Lethal Weapon 2

Lethal Weapon 2 appeals to me more than the first one, even though the violence is still there, so this actually contradicts the idea that the sequel is rarely up to the standard of its predecessor. The film is a little lighter in tone, but there are surprisingly dark moments that mean the film cannot simply be categorised as an action comedy.

It comes as a bit of a surprise that the film is from the time when South Africans were still stupid racist pigs who could conveniently be used as unscrupulous villains. Riggs and Murtaugh get on the trail of a case in which the South African ambassador apparently exploits his diplomatic immunity to give himself room to make lots of money illegally. The partners are not stopped by that, however, even though the ambassador Arjen Rudd tries to scare them off by every means. In the end he resorts to murder. Among those who suffer is the sweet embassy secretary Rika van den Haas, with whom Riggs has just started an affair. For Riggs it becomes a matter of personal revenge.

The irritating but comic Leo Getz is also in this film, in which he is a police witness who has to be protected by Riggs and Murtaugh, who would not dream of sitting on their backsides, so he gets dragged along on their wild escapades.