Two tough Los Angeles cops, one who carries a lethal weapon (Glover) and the other who is one (Gibson), are teamed as partners in a highly unusual case involving a massive international ring which has its roots in Vietnam - a place they are both all too familiar with. This film, with its fresh, energetic combination of comedy, drama and action, has managed to spawn three highly successful sequels.
Film debut for Traci Wolfe, who plays Rianne Murtaugh.
Color by Technicolor, shot in and around Los Angeles, California.
Panavision cameras and lenses.
The picture is dedicated to the memory of Dar Robinson one of the motion picture industry's greatest stuntmen.
Rated BBFC 18 by the British Board of Film Classification.
Flub: In one scene, the car that Roger is driving has the gear shift in park.
Additional credits: Ramsey (hairstyle for Mel Gibson).
HD DVD Features:
Keep Case
Package Note: Elite Red HD Case
Widescreen - 1.85
Audio:
Closed Captioned - English - Optional
Dolby Digital Surround Sound 2.0 - French (Quebec)
Dolby Digital Surround Sound 5.1 - English
Subtitles - English SDH, English, French, Latin Spanish - Optional
Additional Release Material:
Featurette: Additional Scenes
Trailers: Theatrical Trailer
Distributor Notes: Lethal Weapon
With over seven minutes of previously unavailable scenes, the director's cut of Lethal Weapon is a long-overdue present for fans. Riggs's solitary homelife and the tragic loss spurring him in a reckless disregard for his own safety now come into greater focus. We see that recklessness is new scenes underlining the differences between the two cops. Murtaugh, just 50, needs reassurance about his skills at a firing range. Riggs, not caring if he sees another birthday, coolly walks into a schoolyard sniper's field of fire. All the humor and adrenaline that made this original an entertainment milestone are here, too. No scenes have been removed. But new action and new insight are now included. Include yourself in the excitement.
Source: Warner Home Video
Director of Photography
Stephen Goldblatt:
Production Designer
J. Michael Riva: Production Designer, STEALTH (2005)
Costume Designer
Mary Malin: Costume Designer, BROKEN ARROW (1996)
Review 1:
"...Donner puts it into bright, jazzy overdrive, and the cinematography and music are just right: gritty, gleaming, cartoon-hard..."
Source: Los Angeles Times
p.C4 03/06/1987
Review 2:
"Screenwriter Shane Black's explosive debut patented the modern buddy pic: brash, crass and dangerous to know."
Source: Total Film
p.137 04/01/2004
Review 3:
"...Unrelenting energy and insistent drive....LETHAL WEAPON is a piece of bravado filmmaking and tech credits are first-rate throughout..."
Source: Variety
03/04/1987