10 best films with Eddie Murphy

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Today the American king of humor turns 58 years old.

Before starting his film career, Eddie Murphy was already known as a comedian and a regular participant in the famous Saturday Night Live. The 80s are considered the peak of the comedian's creativity, when Murphy played his most highly regarded roles and released two stand-up classics that have already become classics: Okolesitsa (1983) and As Is (1987).

It is impossible not to mention the magnificent voice acting performed by Eddie Murphy: the dragon Mushu in the Disney cartoon "Mulan" and, of course, the unforgettable Donkey from the animated franchise "Shrek".

1.48 hours

• USA, 1982.
• Action, comedy, detective, crime film.
• Duration: 97 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 9.

In the center of the plot are the gloomy policeman Jack Cates and the talkative criminal Reji Hammond, who have to become partners for a while in order to catch the bandit Albert Hansa.

The film directed by Walter Hill marked the beginning of the film career of the young comedian. The role of Reggie Hammond earned Eddie Murphy a Golden Globe nomination for Best Acting Debut.

Most of the dialogue between Eddie Murphy and his set partner Nick Nolte was pure improvisation by the actors.

2. Swap places

• USA, 1983.
• Comedy.
• Duration: 117 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 5.

The life of a successful broker, Louis Winthorpe III, changes dramatically when his employers ask the question: what happens if you swap the places of the rich man and the street bum? As a result, Louis finds himself on the street, and a black tramp and con man Billy Ray Valentine is in his luxurious apartment.

The plot of the comedy directed by John Landis wittily echoes Mark Twain's novel The Prince and the Pauper, as well as Mozart's opera The Marriage of Figaro.

The film received critical acclaim, won two BAFTA awards and an Oscar nomination for Best Musical Adaptation. Eddie Murphy's acting was also noted - the actor received another Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor in a Comedy.

3. Beverly Hills Cop

• USA, 1984.
• Action, comedy.
• Duration: 105 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 3.

Police Officer Axel Foley travels to California to track down the culprit who killed his friend. Although the police in Beverly Hills do not like Fowley at all, he manages to befriend two local detectives and team up with them to catch the killer.

Eddie Murphy and his colleagues Judge Reinhold and John Ashton constantly improvised during their dialogues. As a result, a lot of takes were ruined because the film crew, including the director, couldn't help laughing. The film is also known for its legendary theme song called Axel F.

"Policeman from Beverly Hills" brought Murphy another Golden Globe nomination and firmly secured him the status of the king of laughter. Two sequels were also released: one in 1987, the other in 1994. True, they failed to repeat the success of the original.

4. A trip to America

• USA, 1988.
• Adventure, comedy, melodrama.
• Duration: 116 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 0.

The film tells about the adventures of Akim, the crown prince of the fictional African state of Zamund. The hero dreams of marrying for love and together with his faithful servant Sammy travels to New York to find the perfect woman.

There, friends find themselves in the poorest district of Queens, mistakenly considering it "royal". When, disturbed by the long absence of his son, the king of Zamunda personally arrives in New York, he discovers a terrible picture: the prince works as a janitor and meets with the daughter of the owner of the diner!

Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall played four roles each in this film. In the future, Murphy will repeat this acting technique in "The Nutty Professor" and will portray as many as seven characters at a time.

5. Nutty professor

• USA, 1996.
• Comedy, melodrama, fantasy.
• Duration: 95 minutes.
• IMDb: 5, 6.

The protagonist of the film, Professor Sherman Klump, is a brilliant overweight scientist. After Klump falls in love with his colleague Karla, he decides to lose weight in order to please her. However, all of Sherman's attempts fail.

Then the professor decides to try on himself a remedy for extreme weight loss, which he is working on in his laboratory. As a result, the fat man Klump turns into a slender handsome man.

But the drug has an unpleasant side effect: the professor has a second personality. This arrogant and opinionated braggart calls himself Beloved Brother. His antics soon get out of control, and Sherman Klump has to fight with Brother for the right to be in his own body.

The film is conceived as a remake of the fantasy comedy of the same name in 1963. Other than that, it also has a lot in common with the 1994 movie "The Mask," starring Jim Carrey. There, the hero, who wanted to win the girl's heart, also turned into an insane double and lost control over him.

In the 90s in the career of Eddie Murphy, there is a serious decline. His new films receive less and less flattering reviews and more and more criticism.

6. Dr. Dolittle

• USA, 1998.
• Comedy.
• Duration: 85 minutes.
• IMDb: 5, 4.

Dr. John Dolittle is a happy and self-sufficient person. But after one night he almost runs over a dog in his car, the hero begins to understand the language of animals. Animals from all over the city flock to John for medical advice, and this jeopardizes his entire career.

The film is based in part on the 1967 musical of the same name. And that, in turn, is based on the classic children's book by British writer Hugh Lofting. It is interesting that at one time it was the image of Doctor Dolittle that served as the prototype of Doctor Aibolit for Korney Chukovsky.

The filming was attended by many real animals, which were carefully trained for several months. And Eddie Murphy himself had a hard time, as one kind of animals terrified the actor.

7. Cool guy

• USA, 1999.
• Comedy.
• Duration: 97 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 4.

The plot revolves around the unfortunate director Bobby Bowfinger. The hero finally finds an "ideal" (but in fact - a very mediocre) scenario and realizes that he wants to make a real blockbuster based on it. For complete happiness, the director lacks only the actor Keith Ramsay, an action star. Only Keith is not going to be filming with Bowfinger.

The role of Keith Ramsay was originally written for Keanu Reeves, but was given to Eddie Murphy due to his strong interest in the project. An avid fan of the actor Steve Martin, Murphy really wanted to work with him.

8. Lifetime

• USA, 1999.
• Comedy, drama.
• Duration: 108 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 7.

The main characters of the film are prisoners Ray and Claude, sentenced to life in prison for a crime they did not commit. Friends do not lose hope of escaping from prison in order to take revenge on those who set them up.

"For Life" is the second joint film between Eddie Murphy and another famous comedian, actor Martin Lawrence. The previous project in which they worked together was the 1992 Boomerang.

9. Dream girls

• USA, 2006.
• Drama, musical.
• Duration: 130 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 5.

Three young women - Dina Jones, Effie White and Lorrell Robinson - dream of becoming pop stars. Under the leadership of ambitious producer Curtis Taylor, the vocal trio begins their thorny path to fame.

The role of Curtis Taylor is one of the few dramatic roles in Eddie Murphy's career. She brought the actor the long-awaited Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor, as well as an Oscar nomination.

10. How to steal a skyscraper

• USA, 2011.
• Comedy, detective.
• Duration: 104 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 2.

Residential skyscraper manager Josh Kovacs (Ben Stiller) discovers that the richest tenant in the building is involved in stealing his employees' retirement savings. To prove the guilt of the guest, he assembles a team led by an experienced swindler Slide (Eddie Murphy).

Eddie Murphy and Chris Rock were initially considered for the lead roles in the film, as the studio's plans were to create a "color" version of Ocean's Eleven. The picture was not nominated for prestigious awards, but critics generally responded positively about it.

From the 2000s to this day, Murphy's career has been quiet. The actor is less and less involved in films. The last burst of creativity Eddie - the role in the drama directed by Bruce Beresford "Mr. Church" (2016). Critics to smithereens criticized the film, but at the same time appreciated the dramatic potential of Murphy.

This leaves little hope that, like Jim Carrey, who returned in 2018 in the comedy-drama series Kidding, Eddie Murphy will still delight his viewers with worthy roles.