REVIEW: “The Naked Gun” (2025)

(Courtesy IMP Awards)

Liam Neeson has a thing or two in common with the late, great Leslie Nielsen. Besides sharing the same initials (at least, professionally), both began their acting careers in serious dramatic performances. As Nielsen’s career forever changed when he accepted his now-unforgettable role in the aerial parody Airplane!, Neeson experienced an unexpected transition as a leading man—one with “a particular set of skills”—in action movies since starring in the intense thriller Taken in 2008. Since then, he’s been mostly typecast in that particular genre. So, imagine how funny it is to now see him lampoon that archetype—although, he did do that as the voice of Good Cop/Bad Cop in The Lego Movie—in an update of David Zucker’s slapstick farce The Naked Gun. 

Succeeding Nielsen, Neeson plays the son of incompetent Police Squad detective Frank Drebin in this 2025 legacy sequel from producer Seth McFarlane (the Family Guy creator who directed the actor in A Million Ways to Die in the West and for a brief cameo in Ted 2) and Lonely Island veteran Akiva Shaffer, who directs. (Shaffer’s previous credits include the music mockumentary Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping and the overstuffed live-action/animated Chip & Dale: Rescue Rangers.) Neeson's gruff, dry narration guides this comical update on police procedurals, with Paul Walter Hauser succeeding George Kennedy as the son of fellow officer Ed Hocken, a sinister plot (led by screen veteran Danny Huston) to brainwash the global population with technology (including self-driving electric cars and a literal “P.L.O.T. device”), a brief gag about former Nordberg (and now elephant in the room) O.J. Simpson, and a femme fetale/love interest in Pamela Anderson. (The latter has been experiencing her own career resurgence as of late, thanks to her 2023 autobiography and Netflix documentary, and a critically acclaimed performance in Gia Coppola’s 2024 drama The Last Showgirl.) 

Zucker has gone on record that he has no intention of seeing this new movie. And I don’t blame him, as the film's brand of comedy, particularly that of the ZAZ trio, is very specific. Zucker and frequent collaborator Pat Proft had written a script for a sequel that would’ve spoofed Mission: Impossible, The Bourne Identity, and James Bond. The finished 2025 entry, interestingly, was scored by Lorne Balfe (who composed some of the recent M:I flicks), while that long-running spy franchise is ingeniously parodied here. On the flip side, the controversial CGI blood from the bank heist in the film’s teaser trailer (and opening sequence) is wisely omitted. In fairness, Shaffer and McFarlane’s Naked Gun doesn’t reach the same heights as its 1988 predecessor (nor its two sequels). But it’s still very, very funny. And it exceeds the expectations of those who thought it was going to stink. [WRITER’S NOTE: Zucker did reach out to Shaffer after the film’s opening weekend to congratulate him on the respectable box-office intake and positive reception from critics and audiences, even though he has stated it’s not the kind of movie he would have made.] 

That said, while it may seem mild compared to its predecessors, The Naked Gun still has more than its share of scatological and crass visual humor throughout, including a scene of silhouettes that recall the Austin Powers series, and one truly bizarre sequence involving a snowman. (Every Naked Gun movie has at least one unbelievable segment.) There are also some brief suicidal references and some crazy dismemberment, with the latter mostly done in a cartoonish fashion. On the other hand, this movie manages to do what a lot of recent spoofs—and it’s been so long—have been lacking: having a through line and not being so much about the things or references it makes fun of. There is an intriguing narrative, in terms of how times have changed, Police Squad on the brink of being shut down, and Frank opening himself up to love again. 

It’s been a long time since we’ve seen comedy like this on the big screen. While I can’t recommend this movie to everybody, those that really pay attention to this kind of visual and verbal humor (and you do need to pay attention to the credits and stay for afterwards) are in for quite a comeback. Next year, the Wayans brothers will be releasing a new installment of the raucous Scary Movie, while the now-99-year-old Mel Brooks will be reprising his famous role as Yogurt in a long-awaited sequel to the sci-fi spoof Spaceballs in 2027. With all the puns, non sequiturs, surprise appearances, rare fourth wall asides, and literal gags you would expect from Police Squad! and The Naked Gun (Frank’s monologue on football is a stroke of genius, while a scene involving chili dogs is hilarious instead of cheap), you may laugh yourself silly. This may just be the funniest movie of 2025. With discretion, that is. Only time will tell if Neeson will surely follow Nielsen’s lead in doing more comedies. Seriously. Just don’t call him Shirley. 

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