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Beverly Hills Cop Trilogy

The heat is BACK on!

Long before Detectives Mike Lowery (Will Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) hit the streets in pursuit of crime and criminal activity there was plainclothes Detective Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) bringing his rather chaotic (and hilarious) brand of law and order to the colorful streets of Beverly Hills.  For a total of three films (and a long-rumored fourth), Murphy delivered the comedic gold and now, thanks to Paramount, fans of those features - and one classic - get them all in one set.

"With this set, all three films appear on Blu-ray for the first time, newly remastered from new 4K transfers"


 

Beverly Hills Cop, with characters originally created by Danillo Bach, started out as an action flick with Sylvester Stallone in the title role.  Producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer would not have it any other way . . . at least in the beginning. Cooler heads prevailed, though, as the original story sat for a while, collecting dust until Paramount got serious about it as a vehicle for a Saturday Night Live rising star. 

Thankfully, that original treatment did not come to fruition as Murphy, operating in his comedic prime, knocks the character of Foley, who is a fish out of water being so far from his beloved Detroit, out of the park in a total (so far) of three films.  {googleads}

Under the direction of War GamesMartin Brest, Murphy made the character his own.  Starring alongside Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, Ronny Cox, Lisa Eilbacher, Steven Berkoff and Jonathan Banks, Murphy shot to international fame as Foley invades the cocaine-snorting richness of yuppie life to get to the truth behind his best friend’s murder in Detroit.  

The original film is high water mark for 1984 as it infected and influenced almost everything that followed in its wake.  This includes the phenomenal soundtrack, composed and performed by Harold Faltermeyer, and his “Axel F” theme song, which you are probably humming now.  Also included on the score was the Pointer Sisters, performing their soon-to-be Billboard Top 10 hit “Neutron Dance” as well as “The Heat is On” by Glenn Frey.Beverly Hills Cop Trilogy

Sequels to the money-making original were no brainers.  Unfortunately, they down-played the comedy and upped the action, reducing Murphy to simply an action star.  It didn't really work so well.  The results, with Beverly Hills Cop 2 directed by Tony Scott and Beverly Hills Cop 3 directed by John Landis, were met with mixed reactions from critics and audiences alike.  They couldn’t live up to the original. Nothing could. Taking that into consideration, the films - especially in a modern viewing - hold up surprisingly well, with the second film being quite stronger than remembered thanks to the title song, “Shakedown”, the Alphabet Killer, and the inclusion of Brigitte Neilson in the role of femme fatale.  

Beverly Hills Cop, Beverly Hills Cop 2, and Beverly Hills Cop 3 are now bundled together thanks to Paramount.  With this set, all three films appear on Blu-ray for the first time, newly remastered from new 4K transfers.  

Cue up the Neutron Dance and start wiggling your asses!  Foley is back in action!

Beverly Hills Cop - 5/5 stars

Beverly Hills Cop 2 - 3/5 stars

Beverly Hills Cop 3 - 2/5 stars

 

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[tab title="Blu-ray Review"]

Beverly Hills Cop Trilogy

Blu-ray

Blu-ray Details:

Home Video Distributor: Paramount
Available on Blu-ray
- August 20, 2019
Screen Formats: 2.35:1, 1.78:1
Subtitles
: English, English SDH, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Korean, Norwegian, Swedish
Audio:
Beverly Hills Cop: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1; Beverly Hills Cop IIEnglish: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1; Beverly Hills Cop III; English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Discs: Blu-ray Disc; Three-disc set
Region Encoding: Locked to Region A

The heat is on in this fast-paced collection of action-packed comedies starring Eddie Murphy as Axel Foley, the street-smart cop from Detroit. Tracking down his best friend’s killer in Beverly Hills Cop, Axel smashes through the local barriers in a hilarious, high-speed pursuit of justice. In Beverly Hills Cop 2, he’s deep undercover investigating a gang of international munitions smugglers. The third installment, Beverly Hills Cop 3, finds Axel at the center of a roller coaster thrill ride at the Wonderworld amusement park! Watch all three and get hooked for the whole ride!

Video:

The new scans of the original 35mm negatives are crisp and bright, adding a lot of pop to the scenic locations of California.  It’s a nice contrast to Detroit. Hell, even the amusement park looks detailed in the third film - far from what I remember. As I stated earlier, the colors absolutely pop. Locales, both at night and during the day, are vibrant. While there are not a lot of night locations, there are some classic scenes outside of a hotel at night and that scene is full of depth and well-defined shadows. Black levels as solid and deep. Presented in the original 2.35:1 aspect ratio, the 1080 transfer looks great. 

Audio:

While a bit flat in certain effect ares, the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 tracks in all three films absolutely deliver when it comes to one-liners and AWESOME music.

Supplements:

Commentary:

  • Commentary by director Martin Brest

Special Features:

The Beverly Hills Cop 3-Movie Collection Blu-ray boasts brand new special features, including two never-before-seen deleted scenes, four new behind-the-scenes featurettes incorporating vintage 1984 interviews, an isolated audio track of the original score by Harold Faltermeyer, and a “BHC Mixtape ‘84”, which allows viewers to go directly to the scenes featuring the hit songs “The Heat Is On,” “Neutron Dance,” “New Attitude,” “Stir It Up,” “Do You Really,” and “Nasty Girl.”

  • Two never-before-seen deleted scenes
  • Four new behind-the-scenes featurettes incorporating vintage 1984 interviews
  • An isolated audio track of the original score by Harold Faltermeyer
  • "BHC Mixtape '84", which allows viewers to go directly to the scenes featuring the hit songs "The Heat Is On," "Neutron Dance," "New Attitude," "Stir It Up," "Do You Really," and "Nasty Girl."
  • Commentary by director Martin Brest
  • Beverly Hills Cop-The Phenomenon Begins
  • A Glimpse Inside the Casting Process
  • The Music of Beverly Hills Cop
  • Location Map
  • Theatrical Trailer

Blu-ray Rating:

  Video  4/5 stars
  Audio 4/5 stars
  Extras 3/5 stars

Overall Blu-ray Experience

3.5/5 stars

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Beverly Hills Cop Trilogy

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