The Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear

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The Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear

PG-13

1991

1h 25m

Comedy

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Popcornmeter

77%

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111 Reviews

65%

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100,000+ Ratings

Lt. Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen) returns for more madcap high jinks in this police-procedural spoof. Powerful energy corporations are intent on putting a halt to the eco-friendly plans of Dr. Albert S. Meinheimer (Richard Griffiths), the new U.S. energy czar. They scheme to replace Meinheimer with an imposter who will do their bidding. Unfortunately for them, Drebin gets tangled up with their plans while trying to steal back his ex (Priscilla Presley) from her slimy new beau (Robert Goulet).

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Critics Consensus

Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear delivers a handful of moderate laughs, but overall, its strained antics pale in comparison to its gut-busting predecessor.

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Dave Kehr

Chicago Tribune

It's 85 minutes of pure, breathless pleasure. The eternally oblivious Drebin, played with growing relish by a reborn Leslie Nielsen, now seems firmly entrenched as one of the great comic creations of American movies.

Rated: 3.5/4

Jul 23, 2025

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Craig MacInnis

Toronto Star

It is merely stating the obvious to say that The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear is the most important movie of the year -- and also the most excellent.

Rated: 4.5/5

Jul 23, 2025

Full Review

Carrie Rickey

Philadelphia Inquirer

How funny is it? I'm snickering too hard to answer. Not only does David Zucker's preposterously silly film stoop to new comic lows to get you to laugh, it even does the limbo. And cha-chas, too. With arms akimbo and legs splayed.

Rated: 3/4

Jul 23, 2025

Full Review

Sebastian Zavala Kahn

Me gusta el cine

It's the second part that I find most consistently funny, and the one with the best third act. Instead of fizzling out at the end, "The Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear" concludes hilariously and quickly. [Full review in Spanish].

Rated: 4.5/5

Jul 30, 2025

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Gary Thompson

Philadelphia Daily News

It's all fairly ridiculous, and fairly entertaining. There's no getting around the fact, however, that Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker have lost a bit of their collective touch.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jul 23, 2025

Full Review

Stephen Hunter

Baltimore Sun

It's about half as funny as the original Naked Gun, but that nevertheless makes it one of the funniest movies of the year.

Rated: 3/4

Jul 23, 2025

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Joshua H.

The jokes still land in this one ..not as funny as the original but still good

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

07/31/25

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Audience Member

This is a great Sequel to the original Movie, it still captures the same monument of what makes the 1st one great and even though the story is progressively worse and not as good as in the first one including the plot, it still has some great and absolutely hilarious jokes just like the original movie from 1988, Overall I can only say that both Movies been absolutely great so far and I hope the other two will be as well.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

07/30/25

Full Review

Alec B

Obviously there's diminishing returns to an extent but there is still absolutely great stuff here. The material specific to the early 90s (i.e. all the books about George HW Bush presidency) is charming in its innocence.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

07/30/25

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Obi-wan K

it has the same comedy but the plot is worse

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

07/29/25

Full Review

Alejandro E

Improved and augmented parodic humour, with classic references and others not so much, that promise to get more than one laugh out of you. Just what you need for a Saturday afternoon.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

07/27/25

Full Review

Richard B.

Still my top 5 movies!!!!

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

07/24/25

Full Review

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David Zucker

Director

Leslie Nielsen

Det. Lt. Frank Drebin

Priscilla Presley

Jane Spencer

George Kennedy

Det. Captain Ed Hocken

O.J. Simpson

Det. Nordberg

Robert Goulet

Quentin Hapsburg

The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear: Official Clip - Boxing Knowledge

1:22

The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear: Official Clip - Frank Has the Blues

2:10

The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear: Official Clip - What A Drag

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The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear: Official Clip - Wheelchair Mayhem

1:07

The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear: Official Clip - Frank the Tank

2:13

The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear: Official Clip - Pulling the Plug

1:40

The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear: Official Clip - Final Requests

1:20

The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear: Official Clip - Interrogating Almost Dead Guys

0:53

The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear: Official Clip - She Reminds Me of Mom

1:39

The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear: Official Clip - What Are You Trying To Tell Me?

1:54

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Synopsis

Lt. Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen) returns for more madcap high jinks in this police-procedural spoof. Powerful energy corporations are intent on putting a halt to the eco-friendly plans of Dr. Albert S. Meinheimer (Richard Griffiths), the new U.S. energy czar. They scheme to replace Meinheimer with an imposter who will do their bidding. Unfortunately for them, Drebin gets tangled up with their plans while trying to steal back his ex (Priscilla Presley) from her slimy new beau (Robert Goulet).

Director: David Zucker
Producer: Robert K. Weiss, John D. Schofield
Screenwriter: David Zucker, Pat Proft
Production Co: Paramount Pictures
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2011
Box Office (Gross USA): $84.3M
Runtime: 1h 25m
Sound Mix: Surround

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