Some say directing is 90% casting. In the case of as Lt. Frank Drebin, it was more like 110%.
The choice of Nielsen for 鈥淧olice Squad!鈥 and the subsequent 鈥淣aked Gun鈥 movies deserves a special place in the annals of brilliant casting choices. Surely you could say that the masters of spoof 鈥 David Zucker, Jim Abrahams and Jerry Zucker 鈥 first struck gold in putting Nielsen in 鈥淎irplane!鈥 But why, exactly, Nielsen was so perfect for 1988鈥檚 鈥淭he Naked Gun鈥 is natural to ponder during Akiva Schaffer鈥檚 spirited but just off-the-mark , starring Liam Neeson.
Neeson, like Nielsen, has lived largely in dramatic roles most of his career, so he鈥檚 seemingly a good candidate to not just play it straight, but deadly serious. Nielsen, a 鈥50s leading man reborn in 鈥80s slapstick, once said he had been cast against type all his career until 鈥淧olice Squad!鈥 came along. So when he, as Drebin, suggested 鈥渁 great, little out of the way place that serves Viking food,鈥 Nielsen wasn鈥檛 just delivering a line with perfect deadpan. He was self-actualizing.
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You can鈥檛 say the same for Neeson in 鈥淭he Naked Gun.鈥 He鈥檚 plenty game; commitment isn鈥檛 the issue. But in this sometimes witty ode to the Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker style of satire, the role never feels quite right for him, despite the phonetic connections.
There have been a few notable exceptions, but the big-screen comedy has grown almost nonexistent lately. So it would be easy to hail 鈥淭he Naked Gun鈥 as something better than it is, since it simply existing is cause for celebration. But like most reboots, particularly comedy ones, the best thing about the new 鈥淣aked Gun鈥 is that it might send you back to the original.
Liam Neeson in a scene from 鈥淭he Naked Gun.鈥
This one comes from an entirely new generation. Schaffer, the behind-the-scenes member of Lonely Island, directs and Seth MacFarlane produces. The script is by Schaffer, Dan Gregor (鈥淐hip 鈥檔 Dale: Rescue Rangers,鈥 鈥淒olittle鈥) and Doug Mand.
Those are some disparate comic sensibilities, but they together prove fairly adept at channeling the wry rhythms of Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker. David Zucker, himself, ; he鈥檚 said he couldn鈥檛 鈥渦nsee鈥 the trailer. The scene from that trailer happens to be the first in movie. During a bank heist, a little schoolgirl calmly walks in before Lt. Frank Drebin Jr. (Neeson) reveals himself. Unmasked, he stands up tall still wearing a now very skimpy schoolgirl uniform.
The tone of that moment 鈥 a little grotesque, straining to be eye-catching, seemingly made for the trailer 鈥 belongs more to contemporary comedies than 鈥淭he Naked Gun.鈥 The good news is that there鈥檚 no worse scene in the movie.
鈥淭he Naked Gun鈥 soon enough stabilizes in a more deadpan register. Neeson鈥檚 Drebin is the son of Nielsen鈥檚 lieutenant. The film gives him a quick hat tip when Drebin pauses in front of a plaque of his father in the police department. If you鈥檙e wondering how the movie handles O.J. Simpson鈥檚 legacy, another officer momentarily stands before the same plaque for Nordberg before deciding not to.
The quips are good, though. Drebin, watching footage of him enraged on a previous case, seethes, 鈥淚 was furious about the Janet Jackson Super Bowl.鈥 鈥淭hat was 20 years ago!鈥 someone replies. Another exchange: 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 fight City Hall.鈥 鈥淚t鈥檚 a building.鈥
You could make a good case that a diet of such wordplay is all one, really, needs. There are definite pleasures in seeing this tradition of dumb-but-smart comedy carried on. Also giving the film a lift is Pamela Anderson, playing the distraught sister of a man killed in an electric vehicle crash. The villain this time is a tech mogul, played with typical sleazy panache by Danny Huston. Once again, a police procedural serves as the movie鈥檚 framework, complete with shadow-forming Venetian blinds and hardboiled monologuing. This time, though, thanks to Nielsen鈥檚 flinty presence (and all those 鈥淭aken鈥 thrillers), you half believe him as a tough detective.
Who might have played Drebin? The best answers I could come up with are Bryan Cranston or maybe Morgan Freeman. But I also, after going back to rewatch the original, suspect there鈥檚 just no topping Nielsen. It has to be up there among the greatest comic performances, and the Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker wit surrounding him only feels more out of reach after this well-meaning homage. But if you disagree, I鈥檓 sure that we can handle this situation maturely, just like the responsible adults that we are. Isn鈥檛 that right, Mr. Poopy Pants?
