Movies - Lethal Weapon 2

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	Movies - Lethal Weapon 2

Lethal Weapon 2 is the second movie in the Lethal Weapon series, released in 1989. It starred Mel Gibson, Danny Glover and Joe Pesci.

Tagline: The magic is back!

Plot

The sequel to Lethal Weapon
is set in the fall of 1989. Murtaugh and Riggs have been partners for two years now and are virtually inseparable. Riggs spends much of his time with Murtaugh's family, while Murtaugh is contemplating retirement. There is also a subplot about Murtaugh's daughter beginning her acting career, in a condom commercial, much to his chagrin.

As the movie begins, Riggs and Murtaugh are involved in a car chase through the streets of Los Angeles. What was supposed to be a routine drug bust has turned into a huge, sprawling chase and gunfight. When the car finally crashes into a store, the driver has vanished before the police can arrest him, although they find his car was filled with illegal South African Krugerrands.

The next day, the LAPD sends the duo to keep guard on a witness named Leo Getz (Joe Pesci), as a change of pace after the excitement of the night before. Moments after they arrive though, an assassin tries to kill Getz, and almost kills Riggs in the process. Getz reveals that he was an accountant that laundered $500,000,000 in drug money for a smuggling ring, but was embezzling money from his employers, and they found him out.

While investigating the attempt on Getz's life, they discover that apparently a major drug smuggling operation is being run out of the South African consulate in Los Angeles, and the Consul Arjen Rudd (Joss Ackland) asserts his diplomatic immunity to make the entire operation untouchable by the police.

Unable to directly interfere with the smuggling ring, the cops are forced to rely on quasi-legal investigative measures and Murtaugh must protect Getz from the South Africans while exposing them at the same time. The South Africans try to intimidate Murtaugh by breaking into his house. Meanwhile, Riggs romances Rika van den Haas, a consular worker for the South Africans (who has her own suspicions about her bosses).

The South Africans essentially declare war on the LAPD, killing a string of officers in one night through bombings, and almost kill Riggs when a helicopter strafes his trailer and almost destroys it. Leo Getz is kidnapped and tortured by the South Africans. Rika and Riggs are kidnapped, and tossed into the harbor to die. Riggs is able to escape, but Rika has drowned by the time he is able to get to her. He also discovers how his wife died, when Vorstedt (Derrick O'Connor), one of the South Africans, admits he murdered his wife several years earlier (while trying to kill him) when they thought Riggs was too close to discovering their operation (and who had just killed Rika). The 38-year old cop has now lost two women of his life.

Riggs and Murtaugh, fed up with not being able to touch the South Africans because of their Diplomatic Immunity, decide to go outside the law. Leaving their badges behind, they destroy a stilt house that was owned by the consulate (as part of their mission to rescue Leo), then track down the freighter the South Africans are using to transport their money (the half-billion dollars in cash Leo helped them launder) back to Cape Town. After a bloody shootout, the duo have defeated the South Africans, although Ruud shoots Riggs, apparently killing him. As Murtaugh pulls his gun on Ruud, the diplomat holds up his passport and boasts about his diplomatic immunity, which Murtaugh ignores as he kills the consular official on the spot with one bullet, muttering "It's just been revoked."

Murtaugh holds Riggs, as Riggs lies seriously wounded (at first he was afraid he was dead), and in the distance the sirens of the police wail, letting them know everything will be alright.

Reaction and legacy

The movie was the third most successful movie of 1989 (after Batman
and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
), earning nearly $150 million domestically and $80.6 million overseas. The movie received mostly positive reviews, although not as many as the original. Nevertheless, it carefully avoided repeating the original story by bringing in new characters and setting up new directions. The film was the debut of Leo Getz (Joe Pesci), a banker who is placed in protective custody by Riggs and Murtaugh, and makes the detectives' lives a living hell due to his neurotic behavior. The Getz character remained a regular throughout the remainder of the series.

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