Imagine That
Eddie Murphy is one of comedy cinema's most famous faces and he returns to the big screen this week with Imagine That.
Murphy plays Evan a financial executive who can't stop his career downspiral. But he is invited into his daughter's imaginary world, where solutions to his problems await.
To celebrate the release of Imagine That we take a look back over Murphy's career to uncover which of his comedy movies should be in your collection.
Bowfinger
This lightweight Hollywood satire was one of Eddie Murphy's few '90s films that worked. Frank Oz paired him alongside Steve Martin after Keanu Reeves was unable to play the sidekick role.
In cinemas Bowfinger was steamrolled by Austin Powers 2 and Big Daddy but it bears up to repeat viewings and has become something of a cult film. It actually gets funnier as it goes along which is rare in comedy.
Nutty Professor
This low-brow but very entertaining re-make was a big success and led to series of 'fat-suit' movies. Impressively Murphy plays almost every main character in the film. However, it's his overlooked likeability and soft touch that makes the Professor character (and the film itself) such a watchable comedy.
Eddie Murphy: Raw
Eddie Murphy's amazing stand-up shows (like 83's 'Delirious') took him to Saturday Night Live and the huge success of Beverly Hills Cop.
After this he decided to release one of his 1987 shows as a hilarious feature length film. The result is a fantastic mix of impressions and rants about fame, relationships, white guys dancing and much more. It's all comedy gold and a powerful reminder of why he is the star he is.
Shrek 2
The sequel to Dreamworks animated hit was an even bigger smash hit than the first movie. It’s a quality film with plenty more great material from Eddie Murphy’s dim but funny Donkey. Murphy said himself that "Donkey is a really positive character. He's always looking at the bright side of everything, trying to work it out. A happy-go-lucky donkey."
Coming to America
Trading Places director John Landis crafted one of Murphy’s most successful movies in 1988. The classic fish-out-of-water tale of an African Prince in New York was tailor made for Murphy’s likeable sparky wit. This commercial success was a career peak he would struggle to match for a number of years. It was also the first of many films where he plays multiple roles.
Shrek
Shrek was a behemoth of a movie for many reasons but a lot of the early support for the film can come from Eddie Murphy's likeable and very funny side-kick character Donkey. This first film in the series took four and a half years to make and weirdly the main actors never met each other during filming.
Beverly Hills Cop
Originally a vehicle for Sylvester Stallone, frantic rewrites were called for when Eddie Murphy replaced him at the last minute. Beverly Hills Cop worked liked a dream and ended up being one of the biggest films of the ‘80s. It spawned two sequels and there is talk of one more film even now. And who can forget THAT classic '80's theme tune?
48 Hrs
48 Hrs is his first movie and definitely one of his best. Murphy’s on-screen partnership with Nick Nolte really sparks and paved the way for the unstoppable craze for ‘buddy’ movies.
Director Walter Hill brings his trademark grittiness to the film and it is now old enough to have a very cool retro edge now too.
Trading Places
Murphy shines alongside an on-form Dan Ackroyd in one on the very best films of the ‘80s. The fun concept sees Murphy’s street con-artist swap places with Ackroyd’s banker as a result of a secret bet.
The set up is comedy gold and allows Murphy just enough time for his wise cracks to really stand out. Trading Places also stands the test of time thanks to a killer script that doesn’t flag from beginning to end.
Imagine That is released 14th August.
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw.
Tagged in Eddie Murphy