Retro Movie Review: The Golden Child (1986)

Long before the hopeless disappointments of Haunted Mansion, Pluto Nash, and Norbit, Eddie Murphy was actually a "bankable" actor in hollywood. From his lips flowed pure comic gold that nourished and invigorated us all. Who can forget Beverly Hills Cop and Coming to America? These films reflect the Eddie we all want to remember and cherish. In the spirit of this desire, let us journey back to the nineteen-hundred and eighty-sixth year of our Lord.

Hoping to instantly reproduce the unequivocated box-office success of Beverly Hills Cop, Paramount Pictures signed Murphy up for The Golden Child (which is mostly just Axel Foley with fighting monks and the Devil). In the film, he plays Chandler Jarrell, a man whose profession centers on finding missing children. Jarrell is contacted by a woman who tells him he must accompany her to Tibet to retrieve a sacred dagger that could possibly save the "Golden Child" from the Devil. Thankfully...and confusingly, it is revealded that the child is a special individual born every 1,000 years that will usher in an age of compassion for mankind. Should he be killed...hell on earth...ouch!

While the premise of the film is a little harder to digest than BHC, Murphy's comedic narration and one-liners completely overshadow the peculiar plot. Any underlying (or obvious) silliness of the story/situations are acceptable as Eddie Murphy continually describes them as such.

Even though Murphy almost solely carries The Golden Child, there are a few other performances of note. Charles Dance turns in a chilling performance as Sardo Numspa, who seems to be the Dick Chaney to the Devil's George W. He contrasts perfectly to Murphy as while Eddie finds constant humor in his journey, Dance's Numspa is unendingly serious. The irony of these two portrayals makes for some funny/interesting scenes.

I personally find it a crime and an injustice that The Golden Child has been largely lost in the shuffle of Eddie Murphy's other onscreen performances. The film is genuinely funny and has a heart that is sincere (an honor that is almost completely to Murphy's credit). Chandler Jarrell transcends the directed sarcasm of Axel Foley and manages to find the humor locked away in the most seemingly desparate situations.

In summation...if you like to laugh...hard...and like cheesy looking oriental sets/special effects, you owe it to yourself to check out Golden Child. I guarantee you'll find yourself quoting it for weeks to come.