Connection to the previous post (KISS KISS BANG BANG): Shane Black directed KKBB and wrote the screenplay for LETHAL WEAPON.
Ratings: IMDB ― 7.6/10, Rotten Tomatoes ―83%, ME ― 82%
Martin Riggs: You know they're going to kill her, don't you?
Roger Murtaugh: Yeah.
Martin Riggs: So if you want her back, you're going to have to take her away from them.
Roger Murtaugh: I know.
Martin Riggs: You do this my way. You shoot, you shoot to kill, get as many of them as you can. All you got to do is just not miss.
Roger Murtaugh: I won't miss.
Martin Riggs: We're going to get bloody on this one, Rog.
Roger Murtaugh: Are you really crazy? Or are you as good as you say you are?
Martin Riggs: You're just gonna have to trust me.
Mel Gibson as Martin Riggs and Danny Glover as Roger Murtaugh
Trivia (From IMDB):
Jackie Swanson did perform the high fall on her own. Trained by legendary stuntmanDar Robinson. Also, the stunt was done using an airbag covered with a life-size painting of the driveway and cars, which, like a foreground miniature, visually blends into the real scene. Thus, the editor is able to hold the shot until just as she makes contact with the airbag, for greater realism.
Jackie Swanson did perform the high fall on her own. Trained by legendary stuntmanDar Robinson. Also, the stunt was done using an airbag covered with a life-size painting of the driveway and cars, which, like a foreground miniature, visually blends into the real scene. Thus, the editor is able to hold the shot until just as she makes contact with the airbag, for greater realism.
The first movie to feature a cellphone. It can be seen when Murtaugh calls his wife to tell Amanda Hunsaker's death, and when later Murtaugh calls Dr. Stephanie Woods to talk about Riggs' insanity.
On E! True Hollywood Story (1996), Gary Busey says he was hired to play Joshua because they were looking for someone big and menacing enough to be a believable foe for Mel Gibson. Busey also credits the film for reviving his failing movie career.
Franco Zeffirelli reportedly decided to offer Mel Gibson the role of Hamlet (1990) after seeing his suicide contemplation scene in this film.
Legendary stuntman Dar Robinson was killed in a motorcycle accident shortly after principal photography was finished. Director Richard Donner dedicated the film to him.
An alternate opening and ending were both filmed (and are available on the Lethal Weapon 4 (1998) DVD). The alternate opening featured Martin Riggs drinking alone in a bar where he is accosted by a couple of thugs who want his money. Riggs claims all of his is in the bank and tells the thugs "not to fuck with him." The thugs attack him, but Riggs easily subdues them. He is then allowed to take a free bottle of booze from the bar in exchange for never returning. Director Richard Donner felt the movie should open with a brighter look at Riggs and filmed the scene with Riggs awakening in his trailer to replace it. The alternate ending featured Riggs and Murtaugh saying good-bye to one another. Murtaugh tells Riggs he's thinking of retiring, but Riggs tells him not to.
The only film in the Lethal Weapon series (as of 5/2013) where Riggs' shoulder is not dislocated.
Hollywood city officials hung Christmas decorations on Hollywood Blvd. a few months early so that the scenes shot for this film, particularly the action scenes near the end of the picture, looked like they happened at the end of the year.
A running gag in the Lethal Weapon film series is the "One, Two, Three" false starts where Riggs and Murtaugh can't decide whether to go "One, Two, Three... then go!" or "One, Two, THREE!" (go ON "Three") While the gag does not exist in this film, there is a "One, Two, Three" false start in this movie. It happens when the uniformed cops are trying to prepare to sing "Silent Night" in a chorus and one of the cops keeps starting too soon.
Danny Glover's character (Sergeant Roger Murtaugh) is 50 years old in the movie, but Glover was only 40 years old in 1986.
Murtaugh tells Riggs that Huntsaker saved his life in the Ia Drang Valley in 1965. Mel Gibson would later play Col. Hal Moore in We Were Soldiers (2002) which is a movie adaptation of that battle.
Leonard Nimoy was one of the choices considered for directing, but he didn't feel comfortable doing action movies, and he was working on 3 Men and a Baby (1987) at the time.
Mel Gibson was only 30 when the movie was filmed, although his character Riggs was supposed to be 38.
In one scene, Riggs asks Murtaugh, "Did the stock market crash?". The infamous Black Monday of October 19, 1987 occurred 7 months after this film's release.
Despite popular misconceptions, Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) never actually says, "I'm getting too old for this shit" in this movie. He simply says, "I'm too old for this shit." He does however say he's "getting too old for this shit" in the sequels.
Film's soundtrack includes Elvis Presley song I'll Be Home for Christmas. Darlene Love, who plays Murtaugh's wife, was background dancer in Elvis' production Elvis (1968).
Each movie of the 'Lethal Weapon' series features a goon with glasses. Here it is the balding goon who delivers the line "He has a grenade!" during the desert scene and is later shot in the club by Riggs.
According to a June 2007 Vanity Fair article, Bruce Willis was considered for the Riggs role.
Riggs's firearm is a Beretta 92F, meanwhile Murtaugh's gun is a classic Smith & Wesson model 19.
After shooting Riggs, Joshua calls the police pretending to be a journalist from a radio station called "KCOP" to confirm Riggs' death. "KCOP" is an abbreviation of "killer cop", referring accurately to the attempt of Riggs' assassination. *KCOP is the call letters for an actual local channel in Los Angeles (Ch. 13 KCOP) They changed the name to the UPN after this film was made, but the actual station is still KCOP-13, just like KTTV-11, KTLA-5. There is no factual basis from any proven source that this trivia is what the film makers intended.
Christopher Reeve turned down the role of Martin Riggs.
Features the film debut of Joan Severance.
After the Explosion at Dixie's house, Sgt. Murtaugh calls out on the police radio that there is a "fire and explosion at 111th and Larch". This is one-half block west, the nearest intersection of the actual house used during filming in Lennox, CA (4521 111th St).
There is a scene early in the movie that takes place in Riggs' trailer. In that scene Riggs puts his gun in his mouth for another suicide attempt. Right after he does so the camera cuts to the television. The program shown on the television is the Christmas special "Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales".
On Rogers refrigerator at his home is a bumper sticker about South Africa. In Lethal Weapon 2, the villains are South African.
Murtaugh's license plate of his car is E641985.
Director Trademark ―
Richard Donner: [Three Stooges] there are several references to The Three Stooges in the film.
Spoilers ―
Body count: 26
Tom Atkins (Michael Hunsaker) reveals that he worked for an operation called Air America which involved the CIA and dealt with shipping heroin out of Laos. Mel Gibson starred in a movie titled Air America (1990) that may have been based on this conversation. However, it is equally possible that Hunsacker (as well as Air America (1990)) was referring to the historically factual Air America, an American passenger and cargo airline covertly owned and operated by the Central Intelligence Agency from 1950 to 1976. It supplied and supported covert operations in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War.
On E! True Hollywood Story (1996), Gary Busey says he was hired to play Joshua because they were looking for someone big and menacing enough to be a believable foe for Mel Gibson. Busey also credits the film for reviving his failing movie career.
Franco Zeffirelli reportedly decided to offer Mel Gibson the role of Hamlet (1990) after seeing his suicide contemplation scene in this film.
Legendary stuntman Dar Robinson was killed in a motorcycle accident shortly after principal photography was finished. Director Richard Donner dedicated the film to him.
An alternate opening and ending were both filmed (and are available on the Lethal Weapon 4 (1998) DVD). The alternate opening featured Martin Riggs drinking alone in a bar where he is accosted by a couple of thugs who want his money. Riggs claims all of his is in the bank and tells the thugs "not to fuck with him." The thugs attack him, but Riggs easily subdues them. He is then allowed to take a free bottle of booze from the bar in exchange for never returning. Director Richard Donner felt the movie should open with a brighter look at Riggs and filmed the scene with Riggs awakening in his trailer to replace it. The alternate ending featured Riggs and Murtaugh saying good-bye to one another. Murtaugh tells Riggs he's thinking of retiring, but Riggs tells him not to.
The only film in the Lethal Weapon series (as of 5/2013) where Riggs' shoulder is not dislocated.
Hollywood city officials hung Christmas decorations on Hollywood Blvd. a few months early so that the scenes shot for this film, particularly the action scenes near the end of the picture, looked like they happened at the end of the year.
A running gag in the Lethal Weapon film series is the "One, Two, Three" false starts where Riggs and Murtaugh can't decide whether to go "One, Two, Three... then go!" or "One, Two, THREE!" (go ON "Three") While the gag does not exist in this film, there is a "One, Two, Three" false start in this movie. It happens when the uniformed cops are trying to prepare to sing "Silent Night" in a chorus and one of the cops keeps starting too soon.
Danny Glover's character (Sergeant Roger Murtaugh) is 50 years old in the movie, but Glover was only 40 years old in 1986.
Murtaugh tells Riggs that Huntsaker saved his life in the Ia Drang Valley in 1965. Mel Gibson would later play Col. Hal Moore in We Were Soldiers (2002) which is a movie adaptation of that battle.
Leonard Nimoy was one of the choices considered for directing, but he didn't feel comfortable doing action movies, and he was working on 3 Men and a Baby (1987) at the time.
Mel Gibson was only 30 when the movie was filmed, although his character Riggs was supposed to be 38.
In one scene, Riggs asks Murtaugh, "Did the stock market crash?". The infamous Black Monday of October 19, 1987 occurred 7 months after this film's release.
Despite popular misconceptions, Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) never actually says, "I'm getting too old for this shit" in this movie. He simply says, "I'm too old for this shit." He does however say he's "getting too old for this shit" in the sequels.
Film's soundtrack includes Elvis Presley song I'll Be Home for Christmas. Darlene Love, who plays Murtaugh's wife, was background dancer in Elvis' production Elvis (1968).
Each movie of the 'Lethal Weapon' series features a goon with glasses. Here it is the balding goon who delivers the line "He has a grenade!" during the desert scene and is later shot in the club by Riggs.
According to a June 2007 Vanity Fair article, Bruce Willis was considered for the Riggs role.
Riggs's firearm is a Beretta 92F, meanwhile Murtaugh's gun is a classic Smith & Wesson model 19.
After shooting Riggs, Joshua calls the police pretending to be a journalist from a radio station called "KCOP" to confirm Riggs' death. "KCOP" is an abbreviation of "killer cop", referring accurately to the attempt of Riggs' assassination. *KCOP is the call letters for an actual local channel in Los Angeles (Ch. 13 KCOP) They changed the name to the UPN after this film was made, but the actual station is still KCOP-13, just like KTTV-11, KTLA-5. There is no factual basis from any proven source that this trivia is what the film makers intended.
Christopher Reeve turned down the role of Martin Riggs.
Features the film debut of Joan Severance.
After the Explosion at Dixie's house, Sgt. Murtaugh calls out on the police radio that there is a "fire and explosion at 111th and Larch". This is one-half block west, the nearest intersection of the actual house used during filming in Lennox, CA (4521 111th St).
There is a scene early in the movie that takes place in Riggs' trailer. In that scene Riggs puts his gun in his mouth for another suicide attempt. Right after he does so the camera cuts to the television. The program shown on the television is the Christmas special "Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales".
On Rogers refrigerator at his home is a bumper sticker about South Africa. In Lethal Weapon 2, the villains are South African.
Murtaugh's license plate of his car is E641985.
Director Trademark ―
Richard Donner: [Three Stooges] there are several references to The Three Stooges in the film.
Spoilers ―
Body count: 26
Tom Atkins (Michael Hunsaker) reveals that he worked for an operation called Air America which involved the CIA and dealt with shipping heroin out of Laos. Mel Gibson starred in a movie titled Air America (1990) that may have been based on this conversation. However, it is equally possible that Hunsacker (as well as Air America (1990)) was referring to the historically factual Air America, an American passenger and cargo airline covertly owned and operated by the Central Intelligence Agency from 1950 to 1976. It supplied and supported covert operations in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War.
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