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31 Things We Learned from the ‘Beverly Hills Cop’ Commentary

Martin Brest doesn’t make enough movies, but at least he talks about them once in a while.
Beverly Hills Cop Buddies
By  · Published on November 30th, 2011

Welcome to Commentary Commentary, where we sit and listen to filmmakers talk about their work, then share the most interesting parts. In this edition, Kate Erbland heads to Los Angeles by way of Detroit and listens along the way to Martin Brest’s commentary for Beverly Hills Cop.


Brett Ratner. Tower Heist. The Oscar debacle. I think it’s time we gazed into our crystal balls – heh, heh, heh – to a much simpler point in Eddie Murphy’s career. He found success on Saturday Night Live, even brought out a few fans here and there with 48 Hours, but it wasn’t until 1984 and Beverly Hills Cop that he became an A-list movie star. It remains a classic, a pinnacle of Murphy’s career, and to this day remains one of the biggest comedies of all time.

And who directed it, you might ask. Why, it’s none other than Martin Brest, the guy who would go on to make that hilarious comedy where Brad Pitt bounces off two cars and Gigli. Yes, he made Gigli. You think there’s a reason the guy hasn’t been heard from since 2003? He didn’t die. Oh, right, back to Beverly Hills Cop. Here is what Martin Brest had to say about this comedy classic. I’m sure I’ll be stopping and rewinding this commentary an awful lot listening to Harold Faltermeyer’s theme and watching this over and over and over and over and over again. It never gets old.

Beverly Hills Cop (1984)

Commentators: Martin Brest (director) and Harold Faltermeyer’s awesomely ’80s score.

Best in Commentary

“What is it about villains and warehouse locations?”

“Once Eddie got on board to do the movie, and we kind of changed everything, this area was the sort of thing I was really aiming towards in the restructuring of the movie, this whole notion that the unorthodox policing techniques that Eddie’s character used wound up wearing off on the most orthodox Beverly Hills cops.”

Final Thoughts

All in all, not a bad commentary, especially one involving the director alone. There are long stretches of silence and several moments where Brest points something out without much insight. You can’t help but think what some of the cast might offer, especially Murphy or Reinhold and Ashton. Yeah, I’m always going to refer to them that way now. Just like Lauren and Hardy. I wouldn’t even mind listening to a commentary track from Harold Faltermeyer. The man is a God, you know. Nonetheless, Brest’s solo commentary track here is a solid one. I’m sure much more interesting than anything he has to say about Gigli.

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