Lethal Weapon 2
Reception

Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)

Back to record

External reception

7.3
5 platform(s) · 7 ratings 211,277 votes
7.1/10 4,591 votes Synced 2026-07-23
7.3/10 202,683 votes Synced 2026-08-20
Audience 7.7/10 136 votes Synced 2026-07-19
Critics 7.0/10 Synced 2026-07-19
Audience 7.8/10 Synced 2026-07-17
Critics 8.2/10 Synced 2026-07-17
7.0/10 3,867 votes Synced 2026-09-12

External reviews

Jonathan Rosenbaum · Chicago Reader 80.00/100.00

The movie overall may be routine, but Donner gives it some spark and polish.

synced 2026-07-19
Roger Ebert · Chicago Sun-Times 88.00/100.00

Lethal Weapon 2 is that rarity - a sequel with most of the same qualities as the original. I walked into the movie with a certain dread. But this is a film with the same off-center invention and wild energy as the original.

synced 2026-07-19
Staff (Not Credited) · Variety 80.00/100.00

Loaded with the usual elements, Lethal Weapon 2 benefits from a consistency of tone that was lacking in the first film. This time, screenwriter Jeffrey Boam and director Richard Donner have wisely trained their sights on humor and the considerable charm of Mel Gibson and Danny Glover's onscreen rapport.

synced 2026-07-19
Rita Kempley · Washington Post 80.00/100.00

Lethal Weapon, that BMW of buddy movies, spawns Lethal Weapon 2, a blacktop-blistering bad-guy-getter that's nearly twice as much fun.

synced 2026-07-19
Roger Piantadosi · Washington Post 90.00/100.00

But no, Lethal Weapon 2 is no artless, autopiloted waste of precious movie-theater air conditioning. It's fun stuff -- crackling, playfully escapist summer fare that doesn't make you feel taken advantage of later.

synced 2026-07-19
Caryn James · The New York Times 80.00/100.00

Before it skids out of control in the final sequence, the film is so careful to preserve its successful comic-action formula that it follows the most basic law of sequels. If you liked ''Lethal Weapon,'' you'll like Lethal Weapon 2; it's almost as simple as that.

synced 2026-07-19
Anne Thompson · Empire 80.00/100.00

Unlike most sequels Lethal Weapon 2 is neither predictable nor conventional. It's just pumped full of juice.

synced 2026-07-19
Staff (Not Credited) · TV Guide Magazine 75.00/100.00

Returning director Richard Donner seems to have smoothed over the few stylistic rough edges remaining from the earlier film to deliver here two hours of pure, breathless, high-impact entertainment.

synced 2026-07-19

lwl community

Community reviews

Your Review

Sign in to write reviews, reply to threads, and like content.

Community Reviews (0)