Beverly Hills Cop III

Eddie Murphy returns once again to wreak havoc on the unsuspecting citizens of Beverly Hills, playing the fast talking cop Axel Foley.

Predictably, the film starts similarly to the earlier ones, with Axel vowing to avenge the death of a friend, after the comical cock-up of a shoot out with some 'bad' guys.

His line of investigation takes him once again to... yes, you've guessed it, Beverly Hills, where Billy (Judge Reinhold) has now been promoted. With his help, Axel discovers he is dealing with the owners of a theme park, which is, as all theme parks are, a cover for illegal dealings down in the 'Magic Forest'. Axel proceeds with his usual technique of doing exactly what he is told not to, resulting in him finding out what is really going on. If only real police forces worked like this. Oh yes.

There are the usual Hollywood pieces in the film - love interest for Axel supplied by Theresa Randle, playing the only person in the theme park who believes his story, apart from the owner of the theme park, a reclusive figure known as 'Uncle Dave', a childhood hero of all americans. The ubiquitous cameo also features - watch out for George Lucas, amongst others.

The film makes its predictable use of plot devices, including an exceptionally odd "gun", which appears more than once in the film, supplying what has to be the funniest moment. The film is certainly not a complete rehash of the previous two, but still borrows all the bits that everyone remembers - Billy's fascination with exceptionally large guns is still there, and the weird art dealer who has now turned into an international arms dealer. It may start off slowly, but the climax is worth the wait, even if you know all the way through that Axel is going to solve the crime. (Oh, no! We've just given the plot away... - Ed.).

Giles Douglas.