This was actually the first Lethal Weapon movie I saw. It came out in theaters just as my mother decided I was old enough to watch blood & guts on the big screen. Since then I’ve watched the original trilogy on DVD and haven’t been as impressed with them. As a whole I might enjoy the series more if they didn’t have constant jazz music in the background – but unfortunately they are those kinds of 80’s movies.

The first thing I remember about Lethal Weapon 4 was the theatrical trailer, which was basically a clip of the epic highway chase. That sold me. I didn’t even know what Lethal Weapon was but I wanted to see Part 4 as soon as possible. That’s one of the best trailers I’ve ever seen.

I remember at the time this was one of the best and most inspiring action movies I’d seen. The action sequences in this movie are insane. The swearing was a bit too much – which is to be expected. And the comedy is histerical. The combination of Joe Pesci and Chris Rock in one film is rediculous. The cellphone sequence is particularly memorable. Thoroughly entertaining!

Watching it recently, it struck me how many good things this movie launched. It’s a very relevant film for it’s time.

Most significant is that it introduced Jet Li to American audiences. I had seen Kung Fu fighting before but there was something about this new guy that made it look so seamless.

It spawned the myth of pulling a gun apart in one move – which my friend has tried.

It spawned the myth of “bashing” a dislocated shoulder back into place.

Laser-sighting was in use long before Lethal Weapon 4, but this movie seemed to bring about a new appreciation for it.

It was the first time I’d seen two heroes fight one villain in a (well-balanced) melee fight. – A concept that continued in The Phantom Menace in one of the few sequences in that movie that Star Wars fans consider worth watching again.

One thing this film spawned that we would probably rather live without – the idea of bringing back a film franchise a decade later to add another film onto a perfectly fine trilogy. These guys pulled it off pretty well – but many following in their footsteps have crashed and burned horribly. Perhaps there’s something about this particular “Part 4” that future film makers need to study and compare with other “Part 4s” in an effort to discover what works and what doesn’t.

Come to think of it, I’d like to see a Mythbusters episode dedicated to this movie. I wanna know how much of it can actually be done. …You know – just in case.