Beverly Hills Cop 3 Movie Collection Blu Ray (Paramount)
Beverly Hills Cop is a 1984 action comedy film directed by Martin Brest (Midnight Run, Scent of a Woman, Meet Joe Black, & Going in Style). The original title was Beverly Drive & it was a straight up action film with no comedy in it. It was first offered to actor Mickey Rourke who received upfront payment for the project. Sylvester Stallone signed on to the movie after that & dramatically changed the whole film which he later used in Cobra but dropped out a few weeks before filming due to creative issues. It was written by Daniel Petrie Jr. (Turner & Hooch, The Big Easy, Shoot to Kill, & Toy Soldiers). Danilo Bach (April Fool’s Day) wrote the original story & draft for it. It was produced by Jerry Bruckheimer (Beverly Hills Cop franchise, Bad Boys franchise, Top Gun, The Rock, Gemini Man, & Con Air) & Don Simpson (Days of Thunder, Top Gun, The Ref, Beverly Hills Cop II, Crimson Tide, & Bad Boys). The budget was $13 million & it grossed $316.4 million worldwide at the box office which made it the 2nd biggest film of 1984. It was the highest grossing Rated R production until it’s record was broken in 2003!!!!
Reckless & ambitious Detroit Police Department detective Axel Foley’s (played by: Eddie Murphy from Beverly Hills Cop franchise, 48 Hours/Another 48 Hours, Trading Places, & Coming to America) latest unauthorized sting operation goes sour when two uniformed officers intervene, resulting in a high-speed chase through the city which causes widespread damage. His boss Inspector Douglas Todd (played by: Gilbert R. Hill from Beverly Hills Cop franchise) reprimands Axel for his behavior & threatens to fire him. Axel arrives at his apartment to find it has been broken into by his childhood friend Mikey Tandino (played by: James Russo from Donnie Brasco, Dangerous Game, Once Upon a Time in America, & The Vineyard). Mikey did time in prison where he could have snitched on Axel but kept his mouth shut. He’s been working as a security guard in Beverly Hills thanks to their mutual friend, Jenny Summers (played by: Lisa Eilbacher from 10 to Midnight, Leviathan, Manhunt: Search for the Night Stalker, & An Officer and a Gentleman). He shows Axel some German bearer bonds. They are later attacked by Zack (played by: Jonathan Banks from Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul, 48 Hours, & Gremlins) & his associate. Axel wakes up to his friend Mikey dead & locals investigating a dead criminal at a cop’s apartment which doesn’t look good for the Detroit Police Department. Axel begs to be on the case but Todd refuses because he is too close to it.
He asks fellow detective Jeffrey (played by: Paul Reiser from Mad About You, Stranger Things, Aliens, & Beverly Hills Cop II) to help him out with a few things & he takes vacation to do his own investigation without permission. He tracks down his close friend Jenny who works at an art gallery owned by Victor Maitland (played by: Steven Berkoff from A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon, Octopussy, & Rambo: First Blood Part II). He is greeted by her assistant Serge (played by: Bronson Pinchot from True Romance, Beverly Hills Cop 3, Perfect Strangers, & Risky Business). He goes undercover to question the man about his deceased friend. He gets thrown out of a window & arrested by the local police. He is released when he identifies himself as cop. He meets Lieutenant Andrew Bogomil (played by: Ronny Cox from Robocop, Deliverance, Total Recall, & The Car) who assigns Sergeant John Taggart (played by: John Ashton from Midnight Run, Gone Baby Gone, The Tommyknockers, & Some Kind of Wonderful) & Detective Billy Rosewood (played by: Judge Reinhold from Gremlins, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Stripes, & Vice Versa) to follow Axel. The two officers are fooled & embarrassed by the out of towner as he looks into the suspicious Maitland. Police Chief Hubbard (played by: Stephen Elliott from Death Wish, Assassination, & Arthur 1/2) demands that Axel to leave town right away after making a mess in their city & Rosewood is given the job to make sure he leaves. Axel convinces Rosewood to help him & they discover what’s been going on with the greedy businessman. This leads to an all out war with one of California’s most respected citizens, can Axel expose this crook to save his job & avenge his friend????
Beverly Hills Cop put comedian Eddie Murphy on the map as a movie star, it’s hard to believe this film almost had two different actors as the lead & it was going to be a straight up action film. As far as buddy cop & action comedy flicks go, this is one of the best ever made! It has the perfect balance of humor & violence which made a very entertaining combination for this. The script is spot on, it has everything going for it. It actually has a great story to it & the main character has so much material to work with. The chemistry between Eddie Murphy, John Ashton, & Judge Reinhold is amazing. They all complete opposites but it just works here. This is one of my all time favorite performances from Eddie Murphy, he proved that he could do much more than being funny in this. The supporting cast is top notch, they brought the entire production to another level. Each role big or small was very important to the well crafted story. This had so many laugh out loud moments & it was loaded with plenty of action. I am so glad that Paramount gave this classic the proper treatment it deserved finally on home video. This is a must own, it should be in every movie collection. The replay value is incredible here, I’ve seen it so many times over the years & it just keeps better with each revisit. This is already one of my favorite releases from 2020, HIGHLY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!!
Beverly Hills Cop II is a 1987 action comedy film directed by Tony Scott (True Romance, Revenge, The Last Boy Scout, The Hunger, Man on Fire, Top Gun, & Days of Thunder). It was written by Larry Ferguson (Highlander, Alien 3, The Hunt for Red October, & Rollerball) & Warren Skaaren (Batman, Beetlejuice, Top Gun, & Fire with Fire). It was produced by Jerry Bruckheimer (Beverly Hills Cop franchise, Bad Boys franchise, Top Gun, The Rock, Gemini Man, & Con Air) & Don Simpson (Days of Thunder, Top Gun, The Ref, Beverly Hills Cop, Crimson Tide, & Bad Boys). It was originally pitched as a television series but the producers decided to do a film due to the original having so much success. They wanted to take this sequel out of the United States to either London or Paris but Eddie Murphy turned down that idea quick. This is the first feature film that comedian Eddie Murphy wrote the story. A controversial affair took place during this production. The budget was $20 million & it grossed $300 million worldwide at the box office!!!!
Beverly Hills Police Captain Andrew Bogomil (played by: Ronny Cox from Captain America, Taps, The Beast Within, & Steele Justice ), Detective Billy Rosewood (played by: Judge Reinhold from Running Scared, Roadhouse 66, Ruthless People, & The Santa Clause), & Sergeant John Taggart (played by: John Ashton from Borderline, King Kong Lives, Trapped in Paradise, & Little Big League) are trying to figure out who is behind the “Alphabet Crimes” a series of mostly high-end-store robberies distinguished by their monogrammed envelopes with an alphabetical sequence the assailants leave behind. Complicating matters is the new “political” state of the Beverly Hills Police Department, headed by incompetent & verbally abusive new police chief Harold Lutz (played by: Allen Garfield from The Majestic, The Ninth Gate, The Cotton Club, & Cyborg 2), who is doing everything he can to stay on Mayor Ted Egan’s (played by: Robert Ridgely from Boogie Nights, Fire Down Below, Philadelphia, & The Ref) good side. Unimpressed when Rosewood calls the FBI to help solve the case, Lutz holds Bogomil responsible as commanding officer & suspends him. Taggart & Rosewood are forced to do traffic duty. Bogomil is blindsided & shot by Maxwell Dent’s (played by: Jürgen Prochnowfrom Das Boot, Beerfest, Dune, & In the Mouth of Madness) enforcer Karla Fry (played by: Brigitte Nielsen from Cobra, Rocky IV, Red Sonja, & 976-Evil II).
He is fighting for life in the hospital. Axel Foley (played by: Eddie Murphy from Shrek franchise, Doctor Dolittle 1/2, The Nutty Professor 1/2, & Life) ditches his current assignment in Detroit to go to Beverly Hills after hearing the bad news from his friends & Bogomil’s daughter Jan (played by: Alice Adair from Miami Vice & Quantum Leap). He asks his friend Jeffrey Friedman (played by: Paul Reiser from Mad About You, Stranger Things, Aliens, & Beverly Hills Cop) to cover him from his boss inspector Todd (played by: Gilbert R. Hill from Beverly Hills Cop franchise) while he’s gone. After some investigation & he finds out the ammunition was specially manufactured by Charles Cain (played by: Dean Stockwell from Quantum Leap, Blue Velvet, The Dunwich Horror, & To Live and Die in L.A.). He goes to the gun club where he runs into every possible suspect for these recent crimes. They find out that international arms dealer Nikos Thomopolis (played by: Paul Guilfoyle from CSI, Wall Street, L.A. Confidential, & The Serpent and the Rainbow) is buying weapons from Dent & his associates. Axel tricks Dent’s accountant Sidney Bernstein into giving him some critical information about his main suspect. With Lutz breathing down their neck & watching their every move, the three cops close in to solve their fiend’s attack plus the true indentity of the infamous “Alphabet Crimes” mastermind. Can they solve everything before Dent, Fry, & Cain escape for good????
Beverly Hills Cop 2 amped everything up, it had all kinds of action & it was hilarious! I thought this one was the funniest entry from the BHC franchise. It had some slick one liners that had you laughing out loud like crazy. The chemistry between Eddie Murphy, Judge Reinhold, & John Ashton was better than ever here. I liked how they reversed things here, Axel was the one saving & helping them this time. Axel Foley is my all time favorite Eddie Murphy role, this is a great performance by the legendary comedian. The supporting cast was awesome in this sequel. The Billy character is crazy as hell in this, Judge has so much fun with the role here. It had a nice variety of villains here. Plus it was cool to see so many characters returning for this follow up. Tony Scott had his own style & he knew how to deliver when it came to action films. The cinematography was best in the series. The soundtrack & score was basically it’s own character in Beverly Hills Cop 2. It hit the right notes & set a mood for it. I think this movie is very under-rated, it’s just as good as the original. It might even be a little better, my opinion always changes on those two every few years because the replay value is strong for the first two films. I wish BHC 2 had it’s old extras added to this blu ray plus get some brand new bonus material for this release but I will say it looks fantastic, HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!!
Beverly Hills Cop III is a 1994 action comedy film directed by John Landis (Trading Places, Coming to America, Animal House, Schlock, & An American Werewolf in London). It was written by Steven E. de Souza (48 Hours, Die Hard 1/2, Commando, The Running Man, Bad Dreams, & Street Fighter). It went through various script & story changes including a few overseas scenarios. It was produced by Robert Rehme (Vice Squad, Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger, & An Eye for an Eye), Mark Lipsky (Metro, Harlem Nights, Bommerang, & Vampire in Brooklyn), & Mace Neufeld (The Omen, The Funhouse, Transylvania 6-5000, & The Equalizer 1/2). Super producer Joel Silver (Die Hard fracnise, Lethal Weapon franchise, Predator franchise, 48 Hours, & The Last Boy Scout) originally joined the production but dropped out due to several delays. The budget was $70 million & it grossed $119.5 million worldwide at the box office!!!!
One night in Detroit, Axel Foley (played by: Eddie Murphy from Beverly Hills Cop franchise, 48 Hours/Another 48 Hours, Trading Places, & Coming to America) plans to arrest a gang of car thieves who run a local chop shop. Unbeknownst to his boss, Inspector G. Douglas Todd (played by: Gil Hill from Beverly Hills Cop franchise), Axel has canceled the SWAT intending to raid the shop using only his team. The operation ends up a mess & Axel loses someone important to him during it. He is determined to get revenge & justice for his friend but Secret Service Agent Steve Fulbright (played by: Stephen McHattie from Watchmen, Death Wish, Shoot ‘Em Up, & A History of Violence) shuts him down. He ignores his requests & does his own investigation which leads him to Wonder World, a theme park in Beverly Hills owned by “Uncle” Dave Thornton (played by: Alan Young from Mister Ed, The Smurfs, & DuckTales). He reunites with his old friend Billy Rosewood (played by: Judge Reinhold from Gremlins, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Stripes, & Vice Versa) who has been promoted to “Deputy Director of Operations for Joint Systems Interdepartmental Operational Command” (DDO-JSIOC) & he also meets Billy’s new partner Jon Flint (played by: Hector Elizondo from The Fan, American Gigolo, Pretty Woman, & Last Man Standing). While looking around Wonder World, he meets employee Janice Perkins (played by: Theresa Randle from the Bad Boys franchise, Spawn, Sugar Hill, & King of New York) & she helps him out there. He discovers the head of security Ellis DeWald (played by: Timothy Carhart from Black Sheep, Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh, Witness, & Thelma & Louise) is the same man that killed his friend while meeting with park manager Orrin Sanderson (played by: John Saxon from Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, Black Christmas, Tenebrae, & From Dusk Till Dawn). He runs into a familiar face while he’s in California, Serge (played by: Bronson Pinchot from True Romance, Beverly Hills Cop 3, Perfect Strangers, & Risky Business) who’s running a new business now & provides him some weapons to test out.No one seems to believe Axel about Dewald but he still pursues his case. Who can he trust now? Will he be able to make Beverly Hills safe again like before????
Beverly Hills Cop III has always been dismissed & treated like the bastard child of the popular franchise. They went a completely different direction with this sequel. It was more serious than the other two. It still had some humor especially the hilarious opening music number but it was meant as a straight up action flick rather than being a comedy like before. It had all kinds of action so it makes up for the lack of laughs. It had so many delays that it had to be rewritten & lots of the original cast couldn’t return for this one. The chemistry wasn’t really here which was one of the best things about the series. Eddie Murphy wanted Axel to be more serious & grown up for the end of this trilogy. He played Foley very different in III. When it had comedic opportunities he downplayed them & created a more mature tone to the Beverly Hills Cop universe. Judge Reinhold went from batshit crazy to the boss in this. Those two are always great together but this really missed John Ashton, Ronny Cox, & Paul Reiser. It made a big difference not having those characters in it. Don’t get me wrong, Hector Elizondo is actually an upgrade when it comes to acting when compared to John Ashton but his Jon Flint role was just a Taggart clone. It didn’t feel the same but they tried so hard to make it that way. Timothy Carhart is a good actor but he was definitely the weakest villain out of all the movies. The supporting cast was really good that included Gil Hill, John Saxon, Bronson Pinchot, Stephen McHattie, Alan Young & Theresa Randle. As always, Landis delivers all kinds of awesome cameos which include Joe Dante (Gremlins), George Lucas (Star Wars), Peter Medak (The Changeling), Arthur Hiller (See No Evil, Hear No Evil), John Singleton (Higher Learning), Ray Harryhausen, Al Green,Julie Strain (Heavy Metal 2000), Michael Bowen (Kill Bill), Al Leong (Big Trouble in Little China), Thomas Rosales Jr. (Speed), Bob Minor (Commando), & Louis Lombardi (The Sopranos). Personally, I think this film is under-rated & I really enjoyed how it separated itself from the others. It’s definitely the weakest entry but it’s still very fun & entertaining, RECOMMENDED!!!!
Let’s talk about the high definition presentations from Paramount for the Beverly Hills Cop trilogy! These three 1080p transfers with 1/3 as (1.78:1) & 2 as (2.35:1) have all been remastered in 4K! I previously owned them on VHS, DVD, & the older U.K. blu ray release so I have plenty of sources to compare these new restorations to. This brand new blu ray set of the complete trilogy is huge upgrade compared to any other home video release of this classic franchise. The original was previously released on blu ray a few years ago but this is the first time that 2 & 3 are available in that format for the states. All three movies are loaded with a variety of audio options which includes English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, German: Dolby Digital 2.0, Spanish: Dolby Digital 2.0, Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1, French: Dolby Digital 2.0, Italian: Dolby Digital 2.0, & Japanese: Dolby Digital 5.1on all three discs. The first film has the same audio as the older release but there was nothing wrong with that one. The other two are major improvements over all the other home video releases. The dialogue is crystal clear, all the action plus comedic moments are elevated, & the amazing music has a killer boost to them. So many different subtitles are offered here which includes English, English SDH, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Korean, Norwegian, & Swedish. Paramount kills it on the technical aspects like always, this is already one of my favorite releases of 2020!!!!
Let’s discuss the special features from Paramount on this three disc release! Only the original film has bonus material on this set. It has all the previous extras plus a new additions. It has an “Audio Commentary” with director Martin Brest. He goes over the production & putting together the film. He chats about the cast, He talks about the chemistry between the leads & overall performances. He seems to enjoy revisiting his film after all these years. “Beverly Hills Cop – The Phenomenon Begins” is a little over 29 minutes. It has interviews with director Martin Brest, producer Jerry Bruckheimer, writers Daniel Petrie Jr., Danilo Bach, actors Eddie Murphy, Ronny Cox, John Ashton, Judge Reinold, Lisa Eilbacher, & various members of the production. They chat about how they came up with the story & concept. They talk about all the changes & various scripts it went through during pre-production. They say Mickey Rourke was the original choice for Axel but it took too long to put together the film & he had already took a different role when they were ready. They bring up Sylvester Stallone getting the role & changing the entire project. They mention how it was way over the budget & they had to go back to it’s roots to produce it so they brought it in Eddie Murphy. They chat about their experience making the movie, stories, & some of their favorite scenes. They talk about the cast & the chemistry. They bring up working with Eddie Murphy, Jerry Bruckheimer, Don Simpson, & Martin Brest for this. They mention it’s success & how it changed the action sub-genre. “A Glimpse Into the Casting Process” is an almost 10 minute interview with casting director Margery Simkin. Plus it has comments from various cast & crew members. She chats about originally putting together the cast for the Stallone version. She said she had to make some changes when Eddie Murphy joined 2 weeks before shooting but kept most of the same actors for it. She brings that she wanted the Detroit & Beverly Cops to be completely different. She mentions working with director Martin Brest. She talks about several of the main roles & actors picked for it. She says this experience changed her entire life. “The Music of Beverly Hills Cop” is almost 8 minutes. It has interviews with the cast & various members of the crew. They chat about the iconic score & theme. They talk about the soundtrack & the popular tracks used for it. They bring up a few songs & artists that the record label recommended but the director went with his own choices. They mention “Nasty Girl” was actually suggested by the stripper in the scene. “Location Map” features seven different locations & it has behind the scenes clips on each spot. It has a “Theatrical Trailer” for the film. Now, let’s chat about the exclusives added to this release! “Isolate Score Track” that’s presented in Dolby Digital 5.1. featuring the amazing music of the feature. “BHC Mixtape ’84” featuring musical clips from The Heat Is On, Neutron Dance, New Attitude, Do You Really, Stir it Up, & Nasty Girl. Two unreleased “Deleted Scenes” which includes You Might Be on the Right Track & Axel Gets Ready for Beverly Hills. The almost 7 minute “Behind the Scenes: 1984 Interviews” featuring a few rare chats about the classic production which includes Axel’s Wild Ride, Detroit Cops vs. Beverly Hills Cops, Eddie’s Impromptu Lines , & Taggart and Rosewood. It has interviews with director Martin Brest & star Eddie Murphy. They chat about the scenes, characters, & their experience making the feature. Unfortunately, both 2 & 3 are bare bones releases with no extras at all. So make sure you hold on to the older DVDs which feature some. It comes with a slipcover. It belongs in every comedy, action, & Eddie Murphy fan collections. It’s available everywhere right now, CHECK IT OUT!!!!
