Eddie Murphy’s career has had more ups and downs than an elevator, but his resurgence as a straight-to-streaming movie star in the past few years has given him the juice to revisit some of the biggest hits of his past. Three years ago, there was “Coming 2 America” on Prime Video. Now, 30 years after “Beverly Hills Cop III,” he’s back again with “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F,” which is streaming on Netflix.
The fourth movie brings motor-mouthed Motor City cop Axel Foley back to La La Land to rescue his daughter, Jane (Taylour Paige), with his new partner, Beverly Hills detective Bobby Abbott (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), who’s also Jane’s ex-boyfriend. Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, Paul Reiser, and Bronson Pinchot all reprise their long-ago roles, with Kevin Bacon joining the lineup as a police captain. “Axel F” isn’t going to win any Oscars, but it does deserve recognition for “Best Performance by Judge Reinhold in a Movie in 2024” and “Netflix’s Most Netflix-y Resurrection of a Long-Dormant Franchise.” Check it out if you’re looking for an easy-to-watch action comedy with a hit of nostalgia this holiday weekend. (It’s another week that’s light on viable awards contenders.)
Here are some other movies to stream this weekend:
“The Imaginary”: This anime film on Netflix is a long shot for Best Animated Feature. It’s directed by Yoshiyuki Momose, who is known for his work as an animator on Studio Ghibli films like “Porco Rosso” and “Spirited Away,” and is based on a popular children’s novel by A.F. Harrold. The story follows an imaginary friend named Rudger as he tries to keep from being forgotten by his creator, a girl named Amanda. Between this, “IF,” and the Blumhouse horror movie “Imaginary,” 2024 is a banner year for imaginary friend movies.
“Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire”: 2024’s third-highest-grossing film (so far) is now on Max. In this longshot Best Visual Effects contender, Godzilla and King Kong team up to defeat Skar King, an ape-like Titan who’s basically an evil version of Kong. You know what you’re getting, and you know it’s fun!
“Back to Black”: Focus Features was surely hoping “Industry” star Marisa Abela would be a Best Actress contender for her performance in this Amy Winehouse biopic, but that’s probably not going to work out. The movie got negative reviews from critics and fans of the late singer alike, though people mostly had nice things to say about Abela’s vocals. The film is now streaming on Peacock.
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