If it ain’t broke, is there any need to fix it? The Naked Gun doesn’t set out to reinvent its franchise — it tries the exact same things its predecessors would’ve, and works so well for it. The humor is still silly and not limited by the same political correctness many adhere to today, and once the laughs start coming, they never stop. Everything from visual comedy, pop culture references, wordplay, and more NSFW humor are thrown at you at light speed, and the laughs hardly miss, even when they’re not very “smart”. 

Liam Neeson does a stellar job following in the footsteps of the legendary Leslie Nielsen, with Frank Drebin, Jr. just as dim-witted but lovable as his dad. Neeson’s comedic and clueless turn serves as a huge and much-needed breath of fresh air from his far more brooding and serious action movie roles in the last two decades, perhaps making us wish more of his movie choices were comedies. Pamela Anderson’s romantic lead isn’t necessarily an interesting character, but her performance shines and makes the role fun to watch while sharing strong chemistry with Neeson that works in a weirdly endearing way. Paul Walter Hauser is also great while Danny Houston’s awful villain not only makes no sense, but his evil plot is stolen from another semi-recent spy movie.

Just like classic screwball action comedies like Top Secret and Austin Powers, The Naked Gun’s pleasure comes from its ridiculousness, and isn’t focused on coming off as high-brow or satirical as Kingsman. It’s irreverent and frankly dumb, but always on the audience’s side and undeniably a great time.