Beverly Hills Civic Center - 19606 450 Rexford Drive, Beverly Hills, California, USA
Beverly Hills Hotel & Bungalows - 9641 Sunset Blvd., Beverly Hills, California, USA
Beverly Hills, California, USA
Biltmore Hotel - 506 S. Grand Avenue, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA - (The Beverly Palms Hotel)
California Institute of Technology - 1200 E. California Boulevard, Pasadena, California, USA - (The Athenaeum)
Chateau Marmont - 8221 Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA - (Maitland's mansion - exteriors)
City Hall - 455 N. Rexford Drive, Beverly Hills, California, USA - (exteriors)
Dearborn, Michigan, USA - (factory in opening shots)
Detroit, Michigan, USA
Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA
Ford Rouge Center - 3001 Miller Road, Dearborn, Michigan, USA - (factory in opening shots) Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA - (Strip club scenes)
Lake Hollywood, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA - (Maitland's Mansion Interiors)
Los Angeles, California, USA
North Crescent Drive, Beverly Hills, California, USA
Pasadena, California, USA
Pershing Square, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA - (Banana in the tailpipe scene)
Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel - 9500 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills, California, USA
Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills, California, USA
S. Grand Avenue, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA
Santa Monica Blvd., West Hollywood, California, USA
Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA
The Athenaeum, California Institute of Technology - 1200 E. California Boulevard, Pasadena, California, USA - (Harrow Club Restaurant where Axel offends Victor Maitland)
1986 Won Grammy Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special
Marc Benno,Harold Faltermeyer,Keith Forsey,Micki Free,John Gilutin Hawk,Howard Hewett,Bunny Hull,Howie Rice,Sharon Robinson,Danny Sembello,Sue Sheridan,Richard Theisen,Allee Willis
It was a great year for Paramount. In addition to their success with Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom the Studio still had another trump card to play Eddie Murphy had co-starred in that studio’s highly lucrative movie Trading Places in 1983. While critics enjoyed the film in general, most of them saved their superlatives for its second-billed Star, Eddie Murphy, predicting a phenomenal career for the comedy actor. With Beverly Hills Cop, that prediction became a reality.
Murphy stars as Axel Foley, a Detroit policeman tracking the killer of a friend in Beverly Hills. He is certainly more laid back than his California counterparts as he locks horns with the Beverly Hills Police Department. You get the feeling that Murphy could talk his Way out of hell itself if called upon to do so, and leave the Devil muttering apologies. He gets support from Judge Reinhold as Detective Billy Rosewood and John Ashton as Sergeant Taggart, these well-scripted characters are perfect for Murphy’s style and humor. Believe it or not, the part of Axel
Foley was originally written for more of an action picture, with Sylvester Stallone in mind. It didn’t take long for the critics to heap their praises upon this sure-fire Christmas release. The Hollywood Reporter heralded both the film and Murphy’s performance: “This lickety-split action comedy is distinguished by the wry character conscious direction of Martin Brest; who coaxes a silver-bullet performance from star Eddie Murphy that’s practically criminal in its accuracy”.
One of the most memorable minor roles in the film went to a then unknown - named Bronson Pinchot. Newsweek’s reviewer was quick to Spot the actors potential: “Oddest of all is a salesman in the villain’s art gallery who goes by the name of Serge and is of God-knows-what-nationality; as played by a singular actor named Bronson Pinchot, Serge is the most unexpectedly and unusually hilarious bit role within recent memory. The unknown Pinchot may be one of the few people alive who could steal a scene from Eddie Murphy. Pinchot continued that character and accent when he was selected to star in a popular TV series, “Perfect Strangers”; on that show he plays “Balki,” the Balkan bumpkin, a character not unlike Serge in Beverly Hills Cop.
With the success of Beverly Hills Cop, Eddie Murphy’s position atop Paramount’s roster of talent was assured. The studio eagerly extended his contract and gave him a whole building for his production company, plus practically any perk the superstar might request (his electric golf cart, for example, boasted a Rolls Royce grill).
Sequels? Of course! Three years later, Beverly Hills Cop II was back for more fun and bullets.
INTERESTING FACTS
Axel Foley was originally going to be played by Sylvester Stallone or Mickey Rourke. Stallone left the project and used some of his script ideas to make Cobra (1986). Other actors who were considered for the role of Axel Foley were Al Pacino and James Caan.
David Cronenberg was asked to direct but turned it down.
This was the highest grossing R rated film in the US until The Passion of the Christ (2004) came out 20 years later. This film was later "beaten" again by The Hangover (2009).
FAMOUS QUOTES
Wow! You know, it says here that by the time the average American is fifty, he's got five pounds of undigested red meat in his bowels.
I never been in no cell that had a phone in it. Can I stay for a while, 'cause I ordered some pizza.
GOOFS AND BLUNDERS
When the police car hits the barrels during the opening chase, we see a shot of it from the inside of the patrol car behind it. In the next exterior shot, the camera is visible in the front seat.
A stunt double is used when Axel is thrown through the window.
As Taggart is climbing the wall at Maitland's villa, the shot of him over the wall from above includes a large camera shadow.
As Axel is being led into the Beverly Hills Police Department for the first time, you can see the reflection of the camera crew in the plate-glass windows in the hallway.
Crew / equipment visible in the rear driver's side window of the police car following the truck pursuit on the other side of the railway tracks.
There are crew members on roof when the cigarette truck smashes into the taxi.
