Review of The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988) by Eduardo C — 10 Mar 2009

Mel Brooks (rightfully) gets much credit for giving his films the same look and feel as the genres he is spoofing. The quality of newer output may be debatable, but even "Dracula: Dead and Loving It!" had the look of a Hammer film down pat. I don't feel enough credit goes to the Zuckers, however, for doing the same in "Airplane!" and, especially, "The Naked Gun".

If art is subjective, comedy may be the most subjective of arts. I have no idea how or why this film works or doesn't for anyone else, but I think I can distill at least some of the reasons why it works so well for me:

First and foremost, the film not only has the look, feel and structure of a hardboiled 60s - 70's police procedural, but it takes itself (mostly) seriously. It never winks at the audience, it is never in on the joke. By refusing to fall into the trap of irony and self referential smugness, it allows us to laugh not only at the absurdity of what is happening, but at how logical it is within the context of the film.

The second thing I find works beautifully is that the film takes place in a self contained universe that is only JUST to the left of our own. The physics of our reality do not always apply, but reactions, protocol, etiquette, values and social interactions remain mostly the same. The film is consistent in its own rules all the way through, which allows us to empathize with situations as if they were occurring in our universe while still laughing at the broader slapstick that could only take place on screen.

The main reason the film works so well, however, is its thorough understanding of the character of Lt. Frank Drebin. Frank is a deceptively complex character. He is not an incompetent buffoon but a (mostly) honest, hard working, well intentioned cop with severe social limitations. When he is forced to perform his national anthem towards the end of the film, his already hilarious delivery is made twice more so by the fact that it makes perfect sense that Frank Drebin wouldn't know the national anthem: he has simply never taken the time to learn it properly. His antics as an umpire are the same. He gets so caught up in the thrill and excitement that he completely forgets his purpose. Frank is neither useless nor helpless, he just has his (frequent) moments of Frank-ness and happens to stumble into more absurd situations than any other officer in the force. It is a credit to the film's understanding of itself that his more outrageous lapses in judgment are not ignored by his fellow characters. They are often left as shocked, horrified and speechless as we are, but because they care about him (as we do) they either overlook them or help him right his wrongs.

Yes, the film is exceedingly well written (Frank's voiceover metaphors are indispensable both as spoof tools and as elements of his character), the music is sublime (it literally could have come from a genuine police procedural of the era) and the jokes-per-minute ratio makes repeated viewings a pleasure. But it is the film and the performers' understanding of their own characters and universe that makes it the cream of the spoof crop.