Lethal Weapon (1987)

Roger Murtaugh is introduced soaking in a bathtub while his family crowds in with a birthday cake, and that one scene does more for this movie than any explosion. Danny Glover makes Roger the sanest cop in Los Angeles, a dad who wants dinner on time and no surprises. Mel Gibson’s Riggs is the surprise. He’s grieving, reckless and honestly unsettling in the early scenes, and the movie takes his pain seriously before it turns him into a wisecracking partner. The two of them bickering in a car is still the template for the whole genre. The villain plan is where it slips. The smuggling ring run by ex-soldiers is generic, and the finale piles on so much punching that it tips into silly. Gary Busey is properly unnerving as Mr. Joshua. It made $120.2 million worldwide on a reported $15M. A 7.8 because Riggs and Murtaugh feel like real partners, even when the case is a standard-issue cop show. $18.76 says you watch it in December, call it a holiday classic, and start a debate at the table.

What works: Mel Gibson and Danny Glover have instant, lived-in chemistry, and the movie treats Riggs’s grief with real weight.

What doesn’t: The villains’ smuggling scheme is generic, and the last stretch piles on so many fights that it tips into silliness.

Who it’s for: Anyone who loves buddy cop movies and wants to see where the whole formula started.