Eddie Murphy is back and the set pieces are even more spectacular - shame they forgot about the script. This blockbusting sequel replays the plot of the original - Murphy returns to Los Angeles's swankiest suburb, this time to foil a gang of designer robbers who have wounded an old colleague. But wit goes largely by the wayside and Murphy's mugging becomes increasingly irritating. Jürgen Prochnow and Brigitte Nielsen ham it up as the obligatory foreign-accented baddies, but fail to make much impact, and Tony Scott's direction is flashy but superficial.

Axel Foley returns to the land of sunshine and palm trees to investigate the near-fatal shooting of police Captain Andrew Bogomil. With the help of Sgt. Taggart and Det. Rosewood, they soon uncover that the shooting is associated with a series of "alphabet" robberies masterminded by a heartless weapons kingpin—and the chase is on.