Quartile rating: 6/10 · 1 rating
With personal crises and age weighing in on them, LAPD officers Riggs and Murtaugh must contend with a deadly Chinese crime lord trying to get his brother out of prison.
Lethal Weapon 4 is the most formulaic entry in the franchise, recycling familiar buddy-cop beats with diminishing returns. The plot involving Chinese Triads is serviceable but predictable, and the personal subplots feel perfunctory. Mel Gibson and Danny Glover still have genuine chemistry and charm, elevating the material beyond its script, and Jet Li makes a memorably menacing villain debut in Hollywood. Cinematography is workmanlike action-movie fare with nothing distinctive. Novelty is virtually nonexistent — it's a by-the-numbers fourth installment that adds little new to the series or genre. The climactic showdown delivers expected franchise thrills but no real surprise or emotional payoff.