48 Hrs. (1982)
January 12, 2023 12:55 PM - Subscribe

Renegade cop Jack Cates (Nick Nolte) pulls bank robber Reggie Hammond (Eddie Murphy) from a federal prison on a 48-hour leave to help him capture Hammond's old partner, Albert Ganz (James Remar). Having escaped from a prison work crew, Ganz is on a killing spree around San Francisco, on the trail of half a million dollars that went missing after one of his robberies. The cocky Reggie knows where the money is, but spars with the hotheaded Jack as he enjoys his temporary freedom.

Also starring Annette O'Toole, Frank McRae, David Patrick Kelly, Sonny Landham, Brion James, Kerry Sherman, Jonathan Banks, James Keane, Tara King, Greta Blackburn, Margot Rose, Denise Crosby, Olivia Brown, Todd Allen, Ola Ray.

Directed by Walter Hill. Written by Roger Spottiswoode, Walter Hill, Larry Gross, Steven E. de Souza. Produced by Lawrence Gordon, Joel Silver. Music by James Horner.

94% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.

Currently streaming in the US on Paramount Plus. Also available for digital rental. JustWatch listing.
posted by DirtyOldTown (15 comments total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
Reggie : You said bullshit and experience is all it takes, right?
Jack : Right.
Reggie : Come on in and experience some of my bullshit.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:58 PM on January 12, 2023 [5 favorites]


On rewatch, Nolte is a much bigger asshole than I remembered. And not enough Annette O'Toole.
posted by Marky at 1:15 PM on January 12, 2023 [4 favorites]


Don't forget, this movie is in a shared universe with Brewster's Millions - both have scenes set in Torchy's Bar, and the Torchy's waitress who calls the cops is played by Margot Rose, whose character in 48 Hours used to be a waitress at Torchy's.
posted by hanov3r at 2:05 PM on January 12, 2023 [6 favorites]


I've probably sung Roxanne this way a hundred times.

I had completely forgotten that Remar was Nolte's ex-partner. Maybe it's because I saw Warriors about the same time and Remar just blurred into a general feral psycho.

I remember when years later I lived in SF and was down in the BART station which seemed so much smaller and simpler IRL. It was a moment where I fully appreciated how much of a lie movies and even photographs are, by cutting out everything that's not in the picture.. And there's no place you can arrive at without it being part of everything around it IRL, to say of nothing of what you bring there.
posted by fleacircus at 2:45 PM on January 12, 2023


Reggie: You gonna write my life story?

Jack: Not likely, Reggie. Tell me who this is.

[shows Reggie a photo of a guy with a bullet in his head]

Reggie: That's Henry Wong, old friend of mine. He's looked BETTER.
...and I've used "he's looked better" as a punchline ever since.
posted by kirkaracha at 3:04 PM on January 12, 2023 [1 favorite]


This movie does not get nearly enough credit even within the mismatched-buddy-cop genre, nor does it get enough credit within the Eddie Murphy filmography (top five, no doubt), nor does James Remar ever get enough credit for basically anything (first-ballot Villain Hall of Famer).

I blame Nick Nolte('s character), who is, as noted above, way too far on the asshole side of the spectrum.
posted by Etrigan at 3:46 PM on January 12, 2023 [3 favorites]


Many viewings, many quoted lines:

(Nick Nolte) "Look at you; you've got on a 500 dollar suit and you're still a lowlife."
(Eddie Murphy) "Yeah, but I look good>."

(Eddie Murphy) "You got a lady, Cates?"
(Nick Nolte) "Yeah."
(Eddie Murphy) "You know, the generosity of women never ceases to amaze me."

(Eddie Murphy) "This ain't no god damn way to start a partnership."
(Nick Nolte) "Now, get this. We ain't partners. We ain't brothers. And we ain't friends.
I'm puttin' you down and keepin' you down until Ganz is locked up or dead. And if Ganz gets away, you're gonna be sorry YOU ever MET me."
(Eddie Murphy) "I'm already sorry."

I can't remember if the 'we aint' bit gets echoed back in this movie, or in the sequel. But it served as the reality-show-camera "I didn't come here to make friends" trope equivalent, before that was a thing.
posted by bartleby at 4:58 PM on January 12, 2023 [2 favorites]


...much bigger asshole...not enough Annette O'Toole
Oh god, are you gonna make me watch Foolin' Around, with young A O'T and pre-drugs Gary Busey? It's been a lot of years.
posted by bartleby at 5:02 PM on January 12, 2023


And not enough Annette O'Toole
You could watch Diamonds are Forever. That has Plenty O'Toole.

(except you probably do not want to watch Diamonds are Forever, it's pretty mediocre.)
posted by Nerd of the North at 10:09 PM on January 12, 2023 [1 favorite]


"sky blue piece o shit cadillac" heh.

rare live footage of the Busboys.
posted by j_curiouser at 6:54 AM on January 13, 2023


Wasn't on my short list of films to rewatch, but looking at that cast list, I just might have to, since there's a few people that I absolutely don't remember from 40 years ago.

nor does James Remar ever get enough credit for basically anything

It was fun seeing him and David Patrick Kelly in this since they were in Hill's The Warriors (Ajax, Remar's character, has my favorite line in the film: "I'm gonna shove that bat up your ass and turn you into a popsicle); his career probably had a bit of a downturn after James Cameron fired him from Aliens for being into cocaine a bit too much (Cameron didn't reshoot all of his scenes, so he's still in the movie in some shots from the back where you can't tell if it's him or Michael Biehn).
posted by Halloween Jack at 8:53 AM on January 13, 2023 [1 favorite]


Most satisfying takedown of the bad guy ever.
posted by whuppy at 9:00 AM on January 13, 2023


That has Plenty O'Toole.
Or I could watch My Favorite Year, which has Peter O'Toole.
And came out the same year as 48HRS.
posted by bartleby at 9:33 AM on January 13, 2023 [1 favorite]


^^^ now that's a film.
posted by j_curiouser at 12:03 PM on January 13, 2023 [3 favorites]


I can't remember if the 'we aint' bit gets echoed back in this movie, or in the sequel.

It's in this one. I just rewatched last night and it's still awesome (except for the music and Nick Nolte's racist lines).
posted by kirkaracha at 2:41 PM on January 13, 2023 [1 favorite]


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