Word: murtaugh
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...from Lethal Weapon 3, and the partners' past actions color every scene at LAPD head quarters. But never does the movie rest on the laurels of its predecessors. Many jokes are funny for the uninitiated even as they take on added resonance for those who have followed Riggs and Murtaugh through the years, and no jokes exclude those who are not die-hard fans. Old characters and running gags are neatly integrated into a compelling plot. The movie could easily stand on its own, without support from the Lethal Weapon name...
...there. Russo, looking remarkably unpregnant for someone who gives birth at the end of the movie, is sweet. Jet Li is magnificently creepy as a strong-and-silent, impeccably elegant villain. Alone among the principal supporting actors, Chris Rock, normally so funny, fails to fit his role as Murtaugh's young cop son-in-law. His edgy, larger than life comic persona makes Rock look like he is intruding on someone else's shtick...
Glover and Gibson take their characters far beyond the domain of normal sequel heroes. Murtaugh has always been the quintessential head of household, guarding his flock; Glover's understated performance captures the essence of a cautious man. Riggs has cleaned up and settled down since his first days as Murtaugh's partner, so Gibson doesn't have the crazed Vietnam vet side of his character to play with like he did in the original, but Gibson is equally adept with his characters mellowed thoughtfulness...
...sorts to a more irrepressible Gibson, but both men have perfect timing when delivering the insulting, constant repartee that masks the deep affection between the two. Gibson and Glover turn the cops' bad habit of saving serious conversations for the middle of serious conflagrations into uproarious hilarity. Murtaugh and Riggs may be a pair of fools, but Glover and Gibson make them great...
...sort of homage to longtime Lethal Weapon fans, the film ends with a not-quite-maudlin finale that merges with a multi-picture photo album underlay of the credits, but the real end of the movie comes fifteen minutes earlier, when Murtaugh and Riggs clasp each other and pause for a moment after vanquishing the last villain. They have come a long way from their early days, and the scene captures that feeling even for those who don't know the duo's history. Like that scene, the movie as a whole takes both characters a step past their development...