The Naked Gun is a refreshing comedic experience for 2025. Running headfirst into sillier and sillier situations, its breakneck speed makes for an entertaining summer night at the movies. Your face will hurt from smiling for 90 minutes. 

It is refreshing to watch a comedy that plays with the old without being regressive. While Elon Musk bloviates about how “the left wants to make comedy illegal,” The Naked Gun proves comedy can be silly without being cheap, and does not need to punch down for its laughs. The Naked Gun is the fourth installment of the series, the first in over thirty years. The series is a spoof on cop movies. These films are slapstick comedies, parodies that excel in their silliness. Akiva Schaffer directed and contributed to the script. His experience as a member of The Lonely Island helps meet 80’s broad comedy with a millennial perspective. 

Liam Neeson is our hardened detective, but we are introduced to him in a skimpy schoolgirl’s outfit. Things only get sillier from there. We follow him as we experience the typical beats of a cop movie – the big case, the police chief taking our star off the case, the introduction of the love interest. What makes The Naked Gun an amazing experience is its breakneck speed, and the clear philosophy of the filmmakers that any second without a joke or a gag is a second wasted. As a result, the movie flies by, and I could have spent at least thirty more minutes in this slanted, slapstick world. There are so many jokes, I guarantee you will miss a gag or two. My favorite was a Mission Impossible parody, hilarious in its specificity. The Naked Gun also pays homage to Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker’s (original creators of The Naked Gun) love of comedy that stems from a character taking a turn of phrase too literally. “Take a seat” results in Pamela Anderson’s Beth literally dragging a chair behind her out the door. 

The Naked Gun is incredibly attuned with its casting. CCH Pounder as the police chief is a no-brainer, iconic for her roles in police procedurals. Danny Huston plays our tech billionaire villain. Huston is well acquainted with villainous roles, and is given permission here to play very broad. Liam Neeson is maybe not well-known for his comedy, but is a great choice for our detective. Every silly line is relayed with complete sincerity. He is quite tall at 6’ 4” and has a slender body that makes him well equipped for slapstick physical comedy. Pamela Anderson is a joy to watch in The Naked Gun. She is soft yet determined, perfectly equipped for this caricature of a femme fatale. Importantly, she gets to be just as silly as Liam Neeson, culminating in a ridiculous performance of a “scat” routine. Neeson and Anderson’s chemistry is obvious, perfectly meshing together the comedic duo. 

The Naked Gun’s marketing featured a parody of charity commercials PSAs, with star Liam Neeson imploring audience members to see his movie to “save a comedy.” The sentiment is shared amongst many reviews of the film, with critics taking this as an opportunity to discuss the wider ecosystem of comedies in theaters. So don’t mind me if I join them. 
Seeing a movie in a theater is inherently a communal experience. We are experiencing this story all together – every emotional beat, every action set piece, every tear. Comedy is more interactive than any other genre. To laugh with strangers is a special feeling. To lose this experience to streaming is particularly dispiriting. Even if I would consider the quiet sniffles of my Titanic screening or Barbie watch to be particularly uniting, there is something unique about laughing about a dick joke with a crowd. I do wonder if we are all more self-aware, more attuned to self-censorship when we leave the house now. Laughter becomes giggles, audience members unable to let loose unless a trend on Tik-Tok gives them permission to humor a specific moment of the film. I hope we never lose our spark, our willingness to laugh with each other, even if our laughs are high-pitched or are punctuated with a snort.

Grade: B-

Oscars Prospects:
Likely: None
Should be Considered: Best Lead Actor (Liam Neeson), Best Supporting Actress (Pamela Anderson), Best Adapted Screenplay

Where to Watch: In Theaters