I watched the remake fairly recently, and I rewatched the original a bit before that. So it’s time to give the lowdown on which gun’s better. You’re welcome.
The Lead
Ok, let’s start off with the OG, Leslie Neilsen. Before he ventured into the comedic sphere, Neilsen was a classically trained actor who treaded the boards with Shakespeare and such like. I find that hard to believe considering I’ve only watched his comedic output, but it also makes sense considering how good he is at staying stone cold serious when delivering the most preposterous comedic jokes. The dude’s really good with his expressions too, probs because of his Shakespeare experience.
Now, onto the newbie. The noob, if you will. Liam Neeson is a pretty inspired choice. Not just because he’s got the same initials as Leslie Neilsen, but because it’s a rather daring choice to move from ‘Taken Phase’ Neeson to ‘Comedic Phase’ Neeson. He’s pretty good at the deadpan stuff too. Ultimately, however, he just doesn’t have quite enough rizz as Neilsen to pull everything off. Partly that’s because most of the film’s best jokes were wasted in the trailer, but he hasn’t got that same breadth of talent that Neilsen brings to the table, and the intonation is almost, but not quite there.
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The Femme Fatale
When I saw Priscilla Presley’s name in the opening credits the first time I watched the original, I thought it was a joke. Y’know, like the end credits of the film are filled with jokes. But no, this is Priscilla Presley herself. Nice. I just wasn’t really aware that she went into the acting biz. But I’m glad she did, because she’s great. Her delivery is absolutely pitch perfect in terms of the deadpan dialogue – and vocal pitch, for that manner. And the killer comedic screenplay doesn’t hurt, either. No, that beaver joke probably wouldn’t make it into today’s cinema, but hey, it made it into this era, and that’s what matters.
It’s great to see Pamela Anderson’s comeback on the silver screen, and she fits into the femme fatale role very neatly. While she doesn’t get as many killer lines as Presley (that’s a screenplay problem, not a Pamela problem), she still puts in a fine performance, and the chair gag is pretty quintessential so-dumb-it’s-funny Naked Gun humour. I don’t really believe that she’s been going out with Neeson since the film’s production, but it’s a nice bit of publicity promotion. Anyway, Anderson’s her own independent woman, and she don’t need no man.
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The Gags
While the OG Naked Gun may not have had as many high-quality bits as Airplane (Neilsen’s magnum opus, IMO), it nonetheless packs in some absolute zingers. And it’s also the sheer speed at which jokes are delivered that adds to the overall appeal. Equally, that might not be everyone’s type of humour. Maybe that scene in Airplane where everyone stands up in orderly line to try and ‘calm down’ the hysterical woman wasn’t everyone’s type of humour either. But no matter. For the record, that film and the Wicker Man remake proved that, given the right (well, wrong) context, beating up women on screen can in fact be amusing. But only in those two specific cinematic contexts. Nowhere else. Ahem. But yeah, the gags in Naked Gun are pretty decent. Especially that silly gunfight scene that cuts to reveal that they’re shooting at each other from a few feet away.
Like I mentioned earlier, the remake kind of fell at the first hurdle by showing most of the best jokes. That OJ Simpson jab was great, for example. But it probably would’ve been even greater if it hadn’t been spoiled in the trailer. There are other classic Naked Gun silly bits too, like the random hand appearing from nowhere while Neeson’s driving and giving him a coffee. But again, that’s ruined in the trailer. Overall, however, the comic timing just isn’t quite as on point as the OG, and lots of the jokes just don’t land.
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The Plot
I mean, plot suggests depth or, y’know, that something important is going on. I mean, generally speaking. It’s hard to say which of these plots is better, per say. The OG essentially has Neisen trying and failing to protect the queen, while Neeson is trying to keep Police Squad from going down under by taking down a tech bro. Neither plot is particularly compelling, and they’re not really meant to me. So…a draw on this one?
Final Score
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Yep, the original definitely wins it for me. The remake had a bit of potential, but it doesn’t live up to the OG.