Barnes & Noble

While this dark, often violent, and hilarious film from director Walter Hill will always be remembered as the one that launched Eddie Murphy's movie career, it may be even more significant as the prototype for visceral, R-rated buddy comedies. After a hair-raising opening shoot-out scene that leaves two cops dead, Hill sets his oddball pairing off and running. In order to track down the shooters, grizzled detective Jack Cates (Nick Nolte) springs their ex-partner from prison on a 48-hour pass. The wisecracking con, Reggie Hammond (Murphy), is less than enthused about the assignment, and Nolte and Murphy's razor-edged verbal (and physical) friction during the investigation quickly becomes the picture's centerpiece. Murphy's angry glower, street-smart swagger, and machine-gun delivery -- witness the now-legendary redneck bar scene -- is undeniably some of his most effective screen work. Still, it is the strategically fleshed-out juxtaposition of Nolte and Murphy’s characters that gives their improbable partnership its explosive comedic punch. Of all the cop-buddy shoot-'em-ups that have followed, such as the various Lethal Weapon and Rush Hour films, none has so effectively bottled the spark that Hill managed to capture between his two leads in this definitive action/comedy. Matthew Grimm

All Movie Guide

A variation on the "buddy-cop" hybridized genre, 48 HRS. greatly bolstered the career of Nick Nolte and made comedian Eddie Murphy a bonafide box-office sensation. When a pair of reckless cop-killers break out of prison, grizzled detective Jack Cates (Nolte) is left no alternative but to spring fast-talking hustler Reggie Hammond (Murphy) from the penitentiary in order to find the criminals. The catch: the pair only have 48 hours to complete their assignment before Hammond must return to prison. Naturally, the two despise each other and even engage in fisticuffs, but eventually the danger facing them proves a strong enough common bond for them to play on the same team, and even achieve a little mutual admiration. Jeremy Beday

Product Details

• UPC: 097361377841
• Source: PARAMOUNT
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: Wide Screen
• Sound: Dolby AC-3 Surround Sound
• Editions: Special Edition, Dubbed, Bonus CD, Repackaged
• Time: 1:36:00
• Sales Rank: 38,735

This DVD is also available as part of a box set:

• Eddie Murphy 3 Pack Giftset
• 48 Hrs./Another 48 Hrs.

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