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The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear
Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures
The Naked Gun Collection The Naked Gun Collection

The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear

If you see only one movie this year... you ought to get out more often.

1991 85 min ★ 6.8 (2,857) Released
Comedy Crime

Bumbling lieutenant Frank Drebin is out to foil the big boys in the energy industry, who intend to suppress technology that will put them out of business.

Original title
The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear
Language
EN
Country
US
Budget
$23,000,000
Revenue
$192,030,411
Reviews & Ratings 3
r96sk

r96sk

Jun 9, 2024 · via TMDB

★ 7.0

Not as good as the first time, but <em>'The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear'</em> still delivers entertainment. Leslie Nielsen remains brilliant as Lieutenant Frank Drebin, such a fun character to see him play. George Kennedy and Priscilla Presley do well, while Richard Griffiths and, slightly less so, Robert Goulet are positive newcomers. I will say that I don't think the comedy is as strong in this one, the gags in particular seem a little more in your face with additional winks and nudges. Still a good time, though. Now to find out what <em>'Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult'</em> had to offer...

Filipe Manuel Neto

Filipe Manuel Neto

Dec 3, 2023 · via TMDB

★ 4.0

**A sequel that closely follows the initial film, although it may not be as strong.** After a predictable success with the first film, the sequel was already predictable and the public flocked to see a new dose of madness, with Leslie Nielsen in great form. When watching this film forty years after its commercial debut, it is not difficult to recognize some merit: the film has aged very well and continues to be entertaining today. I recognize that the style of humor in this film will not be to everyone's liking, as it is solidly based on “slapstick” and double meanings with a strong sexual connotation, however it is frankly more elegant and intelligent than many modern comedies of our day. The dialogues are quite idiotic, to be nice, but that also has its joke. Leslie Nielsen is the big star, and much of the film's quality is based on her participation and the inspired way in which she interprets her clumsy character. In fact, the rest of the cast doesn't interest us at all: they are there because they simply have to be. Okay, we can consider that Priscilla Presley took some extra care in the way she acted and has good enough material for the actress to work on her character successfully. Richard Griffiths also deserves positive marks, being another exceptional addition to a fairly bland supporting cast. The film's weakest point turns out to be the script: the story, created to support the film and serve as a skeleton for the avalanche of jokes created for it, is so weak that it is almost unnoticeable. After the first half of the film, I found it very difficult to remember why it all started. I really felt like the story didn't count, just the jokes and funny dialogues. This is a problem, compared to the first film, where the story told, however insane it was, was stronger and better written. The film also has good production values, including the sets, costumes and visual, special and makeup effects.

CinemaSerf

CinemaSerf

Sep 4, 2022 · via TMDB

★ 6.0

This isn't an half bad sequel to the entertaining "Naked Gun" (1988) with Leslie Nielsen reprising his hapless "Drebin" character. This time he teams up again with "Ed" (George Kennedy) and "Nordberg" (OJ Simpson) to try to thwart the ambitions of big business in the energy sector. To protect their control over domestic power consumption, these moguls arrange for the kidnapping of a scientist - "Dr. Mainheimer" (Richard Griffiths). He is about to publish a far reaching report extolling the viability of solar power as a cheap and available source of electricity for everyone. Things is, though, it's not just a simple kidnap - they plan to substitute this learned man with a fraud who will ensure they retain their monopolies for years to come. Can the "Police Squad" get their act together in time...? It all gets a little more precarious when we discover that "Jane" (Priscilla Presley) is the assistant to the professor - and renewing his association with her after a while sets Drebin into many a comedy tailspin. As with the first film, the humour is quick-fire, contemporary and often more Laurel & Hardy than, well, Laurel & Hardy. Griffiths was a good comedy actor, his facial expressions and his sheer size were attributes he new well how to exploit to elicit a laugh. There is loads of on screen chemistry too to enjoy here, and it's not even ninety minutes so there's not enough time to get bored by the rather formulaic plot. That last point is what drags it down. It is difficult to reinvent the wheel, and to be honest very little effort appears to have gone into making this sufficiently different from the first outing. It's just too similar, with too many punchlines you can see from space. Still, it does what it says on the tin - and it does raise a smile - just not a guffaw.

User reviews courtesy of TMDB.

Keywords 13
based on tv series dark comedy good versus evil los angeles, california parody police satire sequel slapstick comedy spoof the white house usa president washington dc, usa
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Cast 42
Leslie Nielsen

Leslie Nielsen

Lt. Frank Drebin

Priscilla Presley

Priscilla Presley

Jane Spencer

George Kennedy

George Kennedy

Ed Hocken

O. J. Simpson

O. J. Simpson

Nordberg

Robert Goulet

Robert Goulet

Quentin Hapsburg

Richard Griffiths

Richard Griffiths

Dr. Meinheimer / Earl Hacker

Jacqueline Brookes

Jacqueline Brookes

Commissioner Brumford

Anthony James

Anthony James

Hector Savage

Lloyd Bochner

Lloyd Bochner

Baggett

Tim O'Connor

Tim O'Connor

Fenzwick

Peter Mark Richman

Peter Mark Richman

Dunwell

Ed Williams

Ed Williams

Ted Olsen

John Roarke

John Roarke

George Bush

Peter Van Norden

Peter Van Norden

John Sununu

Colleen Fitzpatrick

Colleen Fitzpatrick

Blues Singer

Alexander Folk

Alexander Folk

Crackhouse Cop

Jose Gonzales-Gonzales

Jose Gonzales-Gonzales

Mariachi

Larry McCormick

Larry McCormick

TV Reporter

Cliff Bemis

Cliff Bemis

Barbecue Dad

William Woodson

William Woodson

TV Commercial Announcer

Mel Tormé

Mel Tormé

Mel Tormé

Zsa Zsa Gabor

Zsa Zsa Gabor

Zsa Zsa Gabor

Bill Chemerka

Bill Chemerka

"Ladies and Gentlemen, the President of the United States and Mrs. Bush."

Christopher J. Keene

Christopher J. Keene

"Hey Ken, Al! Look what I found."

Ken Kerman

Ken Kerman

"Hey, that's a pretty nice clock."

Al Fann

Al Fann

"It's 4 minutes too slow."

'Weird Al' Yankovic

'Weird Al' Yankovic

"You pigs...say your prayers."

Gina Mastrogiacomo

Gina Mastrogiacomo

"Is this some kind of bust?"

Jeff Wright

Jeff Wright

"Frank, we got that Sure-Grip suck machine..."

C. Lindsay Workman

C. Lindsay Workman

"Your coat, sir?"

Charlotte Zucker

Charlotte Zucker

"For a man in a wheelchair, he gets around marvelously."

Don Pugsley

Don Pugsley

"He's wired!"

Manny Perry

Manny Perry

"Let's get him."

Raynor Scheine

Raynor Scheine

"You're on my groin."

John Fleck

John Fleck

"If that's your attitude, forget it."

Susan Breslau

Susan Breslau

Party Guest

Jennifer Kretchmer

Jennifer Kretchmer

Barbecue Daughter

Ryan Harrison

Ryan Harrison

Barbecue Boy

David Zucker

David Zucker

Davy Crockett

Robert K. Weiss

Robert K. Weiss

Obstetrician

Robert LoCash

Robert LoCash

FBI Agent

Wendy Hogan

Wendy Hogan

Lady in Waiting

Crew 34
John J. Lloyd

John J. Lloyd

Production Design

Douy Swofford

Douy Swofford

Title Designer

Miranda Garrison

Miranda Garrison

Choreographer

Al Goto

Al Goto

Stunts

Allan Graf

Allan Graf

Stunts

Bobby Burns

Bobby Burns

Stunts

Bud Davis

Bud Davis

Stunts

Charlie Brewer

Charlie Brewer

Stunts

David Powledge

David Powledge

Stunts

Donna Garrett

Donna Garrett

Stunts

Eric Norris

Eric Norris

Stunts

Eugene Collier

Eugene Collier

Stunts

Gary Littlejohn

Gary Littlejohn

Stunts

J.P. Romano

J.P. Romano

Stunts

James Winburn

James Winburn

Stunts

Jeff Ramsey

Jeff Ramsey

Stunts

Mary Peters

Mary Peters

Stunts

Neil Summers

Neil Summers

Stunts

Peewee Piemonte

Peewee Piemonte

Stunts

Sonia Izzolena

Sonia Izzolena

Stunts

Steve Hart

Steve Hart

Stunts

Ted Grossman

Ted Grossman

Stunts

David Zucker

David Zucker

Director

Robert K. Weiss

Robert K. Weiss

Second Unit Director

Gil Netter

Gil Netter

Executive Producer

Jerry Zucker

Jerry Zucker

Executive Producer

Jim Abrahams

Jim Abrahams

Executive Producer

Robert K. Weiss

Robert K. Weiss

Producer

Ira Newborn

Ira Newborn

Original Music Composer

David Zucker

David Zucker

Original Series Creator

Jerry Zucker

Jerry Zucker

Original Series Creator

Jim Abrahams

Jim Abrahams

Original Series Creator

David Zucker

David Zucker

Writer

Pat Proft

Pat Proft

Writer

Gallery 172
Videos 2
Similar Movies 408
US Release Dates 1

Jun 28, 1991

PG-13 Theatrical

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Bicara Cinta

Bicara Cinta

2020

VS
The Pied Pipers of Harlow

The Pied Pipers of Harlow

1965

Sign in to vote

Battle your watched movies head-to-head

Community Top Movies

🥇 Evil Dead II

Evil Dead II

1987 · 14 wins

🥈 The Dark Knight

The Dark Knight

2008 · 14 wins

🥉 Halloween

Halloween

1978 · 13 wins

#4 Final Destination

Final Destination

2000 · 12 wins

#5 Halloween II

Halloween II

1981 · 11 wins

Sign in to build your own ranking
0 Points
0/0 Correct
0 Streak

Playing as a guest — sign in to save your score and rank on the leaderboard.

Movie Trivia

Guess the movie from a clue — tagline, plot, cast and more. Pick from four posters.

What movie experience do you prefer?

Movie theater — theater popcorn with Icee/soda & maybe nachos 67%
At home — relaxed on your favorite couch or chair with whatever drinks & snacks are in the kitchen 33%
3 votes

What is your favorite movie genre?

Action 50%
Adventure 0%
Animation 0%
Comedy 0%
Crime 0%
Documentary 0%
Drama 0%
Family 0%
Fantasy 0%
History 0%
Horror 50%
Music 0%
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