Based on short-lived TV comedy Police Squad, and pulling on a tradition stemming from the success of films like Airplane! (aka Flying High) (1980) and Top Secret(1984), The Naked Gun: From The Files of Police Squad! was a massive success.
As it turned out, former straight leading man Leslie Nielsen was just made for slapstick (his trademark confused head cocking is actually a result of being almost completely deaf).
Fresh from tackling terrorism in Beirut, Lt Frank Drebin (Nielsen) is immediately detailed to investigate the near-fatal shooting of a fellow officer, Detective Nordberg (OJ Simpson).
Drebin starts the job where Nordberg left off, at a company owned by the much-respected Vincent Ludwig (Ricardo Montalban) whose assistant, Jane, (Priscilla Presley) Drebin falls for.
Thanks to years of experience and granite-jawed determination (and Jane), Drebin uncovers a dastardly plot, by Ludwig, to assassinate Queen Elizabeth II (Jeanette Charles) when she attends a baseball game while on her state visit to the USA.
Jokes, visual gags and achingly funny moments are rained upon the viewer in such rapid succession that laugh he/she must. Zucker also took the trouble to create endearing and well-rounded characters so that, despite the mayhem, the viewer still cares about them.
John Houseman, as an unflappable driving instructor, is irrepressibly funny in this, his last movie.
The film was acclaimed when it first appeared as the best movie ever with the words ‘Naked’, ‘Gun’ and ‘The’ in the title.
Lt. Frank Drebin
Leslie Nielsen Jane Spencer
Priscilla Presley Vincent Ludwig
Ricardo Montalban Ed Hocken
George Kennedy Detective Nordberg
OJ Simpson Mrs Nordberg
Susan Beaubian Mayor
Nancy Marchand Queen Elizabeth II
Jeanette Charles Ted Olsen
Ed Williams Al
Tiny Ron Weird Al
‘Weird Al’ Yankovic Weird Leslie
Leslie Maier Stephie
Winifred Freedman
Director
David Zucker
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