By this point in time Shane Black had penned two entries into the Lethal Weapon franchise and his beloved buddy cop action comedy style was being imitated the world over. He had to do something different with his next script. The release of The Last Boy Scout marked a change in his writing, one that became noticeably more dark and caustic — the style progenitor that lead to Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and The Nice Guys.
This is still by and large a buddy cop action comedy, but Black and Tony Scott take it in a far more acidic direction. The buddies aren't cops — they're an ex-football player and a disgraced private detective determined to solve the murder of the footballer's girlfriend seemingly linked to a conspiracy involving high-level corruption within the NFL and the American government — the action is mean and violent — caution is thrown to the wind as bodies are eviscerated in a brutally entertaining manner and vehicles fly into the air and pile-up in spectacular fashion — and the comedy is that classic snarky vicious Blackian tone — "What'd you do last night?" "I think I fucked a squirrel to death, and don't remember."
But writing can only get you so far. How's the film in motion? Well it's vulgar auteurist Tony Scott going full-tilt crazy with it. This might shock some of you to hear, but this is my first Tony Scott film. And if they're all like this — taut, flashy, propulsive, violent — then I may need to tap in. The opening section alone is enough to grant him the Mandate of Heaven, but the film maintains that sleek style for the entire runtime. The man knows how to make a movie.
If you're not already on board with Black's writing style, this won't be the one to convince you, but if you're looking for more of his corrosive sardonic style, do yourself a favour and put on what might just be his magnum opus.
By this point in time Shane Black had penned two entries into the Lethal Weapon franchise and his beloved buddy cop action comedy style was being imitated the world over. He had to do something different with his next script. The release of The Last Boy Scout marked a change in his writing, one that became noticeably more dark and caustic — the style progenitor that lead to Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and The Nice Guys.
This is still by and large a buddy cop action comedy, but Black and Tony Scott take it in a far more acidic direction. The buddies aren't cops — they're an ex-football player and a disgraced private detective determined to solve the murder of the footballer's girlfriend seemingly linked to a conspiracy involving high-level corruption within the NFL and the American government — the action is mean and violent — caution is thrown to the wind as bodies are eviscerated in a brutally entertaining manner and vehicles fly into the air and pile-up in spectacular fashion — and the comedy is that classic snarky vicious Blackian tone — "What'd you do last night?" "I think I fucked a squirrel to death, and don't remember."
But writing can only get you so far. How's the film in motion? Well it's vulgar auteurist Tony Scott going full-tilt crazy with it. This might shock some of you to hear, but this is my first Tony Scott film. And if they're all like this — taut, flashy, propulsive, violent — then I may need to tap in. The opening section alone is enough to grant him the Mandate of Heaven, but the film maintains that sleek style for the entire runtime. The man knows how to make a movie.
If you're not already on board with Black's writing style, this won't be the one to convince you, but if you're looking for more of his corrosive sardonic style, do yourself a favour and put on what might just be his magnum opus.
