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Before the action-oriented "buddy movie" formula settled into place in the 1980s and 1990s with theLethal Weaponfilms, Walter Hill's48 HRS.presented a much more irreverent and politically incorrect version of the genre. Eddie Murphy made an auspicious film debut alongside veteran Nick Nolte's consummate performance as a worn cop. Murphy plays a convict on a two-day furlough from prison to help capture his former partner (James Remar). The intense animosity between his character and Nolte's impatient detective is rude and violent--albeit in a comic way--and the film's racist and sexist banter is so ubiquitous that some viewers might be turned off. (This early, raw Murphy is not the Murphy ofThe Nutty Professor.) Then again, sometimes deliberate overkill is funny in itself, which is certainly closer to Hill's intention. There are a couple of scenes for the ages in this film, especially Murphy's single-handed shutdown of the action in a redneck bar.--Tom Keogh
48 Hours (1982) Director: Walter Hill Cast: Nick Nolte, Eddie Murphy, Annette O'Toole, Frank McRae, James Remar, David Patrick Kelly, Sonny Landham, Brion James, Kerry Sherman. Running Time: 96 minutes Rated R for violence and language.
Walter Hill is one of those directors who seems never to make an average film, mainly because his movies are, generally-speaking, either very good or very bad. "48 Hours" is one of his "very good" offerings, giving Eddie Murphy one of cinema's most unforgettable movie debuts and invents the conventions of the buddy cop genre that were to become blueprints for years to come. The film opens with psychopathic Albert Ganz (James Remar) escaping from a chain gang. Determined to track down Ganz, tough cop Jack Cates (Nick Nolte) springs a fast-talking convict named Reggie Hammond (Eddie Murphy) from jail for forty-eight hours, during which time the mismatched duo must find their quarry. Cates doesn't like blacks, and Hammond doesn't like cops, so before they can even get to the business of tracking down their man they first have to come to terms with working alongside each other.
Fast-paced, energetic, foul-mouthed and funny, 48 Hours is simply a great ride. Nolte underplays brilliantly, wisely allowing Murphy to handle the loud and showy role while he etches a gruff, rugged characterisation as a cop on the warpath. The leading characters are rounded off wonderfully by James Remar, as a genuinely bad villain. If the plot to "48 Hours" sounds like a collection of all the clichés and predictabilities that ruin most films, it's important to remember that before this film nothing like it had really been done. These plot devices and conventions are only considered "cliches" nowadays because "48 Hours" was so influential, not to mention frequently-imitated, in the ensuing years. James Horner's music score is perfectly judged too. There are numerous exciting and hilarious moments, but none rival the bit where Murphy causes a stir in a redneck bar. More often than not famous movie scenes fail to live up to their lofty reputation, but in this case that simply isn't so. It really is an electrifying screen moment in a film that really is an electrifying screen experience. Paved the way for Murphy's great film career and buddy cop successes such as "Lethal Weapon" and "Rush Hour".
Excellent Nostalgic Entertainment The movie doesn't really begin until Nolte gets Murphy out of the slammer. As he's walking towards his cell Murphy is singing away to the tunes of "Roxanne". You can't help but smile. The whole movie is full of great one liners delivered by both Nolte and Murphy. I was surprised to see a very young and buff James Remar as the bad boy. At times it does have a Beverly Hills cop feel to it but darker. After all these years it still makes for good entertainment.Hilarious! Believe it or not, the first time that I saw this movie was a couple days ago. I had some pretty high expectations and well, it blew them away! Comparable to such classics as Beverly Hills Cop, I consider this movie to be better than it. Wow! That's something to say! 48 hrs is trully hilarious, a must see with plenty of action and nonstop laughs. Jack (Nick Nolte) is the bad cop. He's not a bad cop in the sense that he's a vilain but he's big, rough and mean. So when he has to team up with a con, Reggie (Eddie Murphy) to nail two murderers, things go wild. From then on, everything is hilarious! Eddie Murphy delivers the majority of them. Look for the hick scene that will deliver laugh after laugh. James Remar and Sonny Landham are great vilains and add to the fun. So, if you want to have some great fun, watch the classic buddy cop movie! And, I trully find it to be better than Beverly Hills Cop. On top of it, this wad made 6 or 7 years before it! 48 hrs is great fun and is something worth owning and watching over and over again. But as a DVD, it's not too fancy and not very well made. But, you can buy it cheap and eventually when they re-release it, you'll be able to get the new one.
