48 horas

This is the one of the movies that kicked off the buddy cop formula. Technically, Nick Nolte's the only cop, but other films have tried to imitate the style by having a tough, cranky, by-the-book cop (Nolte's character) paired off with a loose, easygoing, unorthodox cop (like Murphy's character). Some of these "imitators" have failed miserably and even those that succeeded don't match up to "48 Hours."

I haven't seen the unedited version of this movie in over ten years (it plays on TV like 4 times every month), and even when I did catch it on TV, I caught it in bits and pieces. Now that I've seen it straight-through, in its uncut form, I can regard this as an overlooked classic. Watching Nolte as the gruff, chain-smoking Jack, I thought to myself, "He owns that part." Many actors have tried to take on that same role, but nobody plays it better than Nolte. And the same goes for Eddie Murphy. His talent has been taken for granted over the recent years, since his career has hit a major slump. And rightfully so. He should choose his roles much more wisely. How do you from doing such fun, memorable films as "48 Hours," "Coming to America" and "Trading Places" to doing "Showtime" and "I-Spy." This movie proves that Murphy can go leaps and bounds with his comic talent, if the script is well-written. The scene in the all-white, country-western bar, where Murphy shows off his skills as an interrogator, is a classic.

The film is directed by Walter Hill, who's great at directing action sequences. So the movie packs a punch in both the action and comedy department. Nolte and Murphy's chemistry is priceless, and the banter between them is sharp and hilarious. One of my favorite examples is when Murphy asks Nolte, "Can you tell me a bedtime story?" Nolte responds, "F**k you." "That's my favorite one." Of course, Murphy gets most of the credit for being the comic relief, and he is terrific in one of his best comic performances, but Nolte belts out just as many funny lines as him, though he's the official straight man. He never seems to say anything intentionally funny, but that's what's funny. He says things that are hilarious, but sounds dead serious about them. And of course, it's also hilarious to watch him react furiously to Murphy's taunts.

Those who haven't seen "48 Hours" should really check it out, because it's an action classic! Sure, the "Rush Hour" films are good, but Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan don't have close to the same magic as Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy! THIS is how an action/comedy is made!!

My score: 9 (out of 10)

this is is a pretty good action/comedy movie.it stars Nick Nolte as a hard nosed cop,and Eddie Murphy as a con who he gets paired up with to solve a crime.the movie moves at a great pace,and there are some great action scenes.the dialogue is also very good,especially the interplay between Nolte's no nonsense cop,and Murphy's smart ass ladies man convict.the 2 have great screen chemistry.both also put in great performances in this film.it is a bit more violent then i thought it would be,and there is a lot of coarse language,as well as some nudity.but none of that really effects the quality of the movie.it's a funny,action packed ride.my vote for 48 Hours:7/10

Violent criminal Ganz escapes from prison, and is looking for a money stash. He leaves a trail of dead people. Jack Cates (Nick Nolte) survives the shootout. He grabs Ganz acquaintance Reggie Hammond (Eddie Murphy) from prison for 48 hours leave to help track down the killer.

This is gritty rough movie from Walter Hill. The language is rough. It's not simply swearing. It is viciously vile. Nick Nolte calls Eddie Murphy a lot of racist language without batting an eye. The people are all good and proper low lifes. Even the gun shoots sound meaner. This movie runs on the combustible chemistry between Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy. Eddie Murphy has a bit of fun once in awhile, and Nolte is at his growling best. This is also notable for Eddie Murphy's movie debut.

It's the chemistry between Nolte and Murphy that makes this work, plus the fact that both men really attempt to 'get into the skin' of their character, something mostly ignored in other examples of this genre. Director Hill knows he's got a great team in front of the camera, and all that remains is for him to incorporate some spectacular action sequences around them. This he does competently. That one-two punch is what gives the movie its fireworks.

The banter and situations concerning the characters are also gleefully un-PC. It'd be interesting to see what a studio and director would make of the same premise in these 'enlightened' times. Murphy's comic stage persona is less restrained here than it would be in later films, and the results are often shamefully funny.

Don't expect Shakespeare, there's far too much cursing and other unsavoury shenanigans going on for that; do expect a pacy and entertaining early example of the 'buddy thriller'.

It seems that after 48 HRS, buddy cop movies had a simple plot. Catch the bad guys while being as funny and silly as possible. There is alot of bad buddy cop movies, this is one of the best. Considering one is a cop and the other is a convict it shouldn't really be considered a buddy cop movie. I watched this film a couple of days ago because it had been awhile since I watched it a thousand times on cable television as a kid. I was surprised at the amount of racial comments made in this film, I guess as a child I didn't really pay attention to those comments. The movie is still solid, definitely one of Walter Hill's best films. Eddie Murphy is perfecting his onscreen personality in his first film. Beverley Hills Cop wasn't far behind. Nick Nolte feels like a tired detective in this film. Nolte has always seemed like the perfect tired private eye or detective to me. The rough voice, the lined and aged face, he just seems right. The movie is exciting and tight, one of the best action films of the eighties.