Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)

"The Magic Is Back!"That was the official tagline in the marketing for this highly anticipated sequel to '87's Lethal Weapon when it was first being released just under thirty-five years ago.   We were rejoining the story of two very different Los Angeles cops who became friends at the end of the previous film....wild-haired, suicidal widower Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) and slowly retiring family man Roger Murtagh (Danny Glover).  At a time when the buddy cop action film was a fairly common staple in movie theaters, the first one had received almost universal praise for the performances of these two actors and their undeniable chemistry.  So this time around, they're true buddies but they also have new enemies to deal with.....a cabal of South African diplomats who are also running a brutal drug trade on the West Coast, lead by Arjen (Joss Ackland) and Pieter (Derrick O'Connor).  And beyond that, they have a new government witness to babysit....Leo Goetz played by Oscar-winner Joe Pesci....could these two new threads intertwine?  Let's find out if the magic DID in fact return in this highly successful action sequel once again directed by the late, great Richard Donner.Host & Editor: Geoff GershonProducer: Marlene Gershon Send us Fan MailSupport the showhttps://livingforthecinema.com/Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/Living-for-the-Cinema-Podcast-101167838847578Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/livingforthecinema/Letterboxd:https://letterboxd.com/Living4Cinema/