The Golden Child (1986)

By all means this is not Eddie Murphy's best film, like Beverly Hills Cop, 48 Hours and Trading Places, but he has also done worse, Norbit anyone? But it is one of his most underrated films, perhaps even THE most underrated. By all means it is not perfect, as the story does have its silly and predictable moments, one or two parts in the middle half sag a tad in the pacing and the effects do seem creaky by today's standards, but it is not flat and unfunny like critics make it out to be and although I make every effort not to take IMDb ratings to heart I do think the rating is a disgrace for this film. The Golden Child may be flawed, but it also has its strengths, such as Eddie Murphy's charming performance, funny and smart script(or so I think), a fun performance from Charles Dance, decent direction and agreeable soundtrack. So overall, while it mayn't be to everybody's tastes, I do suggest you at least give The Golden Child a fair chance before judging it so harshly. 7/10 Bethany Cox

Fmovies: How can't anyone like The Golden Child? I saw this as a kid with my brothers and sisters and I remember watching it over and over and over again. We all loved it and we still do. I give it a 10/10. It was witty, funny, great action and the story was very cool. Golden Child is one of those movies that no matter how many times I've seen it before, I'd be willing to see it again. Eddie was hilarious, Charlotte was hot and the supporting cast was awesome. The chemistry between Eddie, Charlotte and the kid who played "Golden Child" was great! Only a person without any type of imagination could say that this was not a great movie.

I wish that I had 4 hands so that I could give this movie 4 thumbs up!

When the only truly pure being on Earth is taken by a Demon and his bizarre, circus freak troupe of minions from the holy place where he is being raised who you gonna call? In this case Chandler Jarrell (Eddie Murphy), a private investigator who focuses on locating missing children while wearing ridiculous hats.

But Chandler sez "No" when initially asked by the exotic-hot Kee, who is working on behalf of the Tibetan forces of good - some business card that would be.

"No matter", she replies, "You are already on the case". So Na-Na to you Mr Jarrell.

Jarrell is fast talking, hip, and irreverent but well meaning - in other words everything that summed up Eddie Murphy in his "relevant" phase, which ended around the release of Boomerang when Murphy got all serious and introspective and sh*t.

Kee on the other hand is poised, deliberate, sombre and calm, but surprisingly well equipped at unexpected times - and I'm not just referring to the scene where she gets her white blouse soaked for no good reason... well two good reasons.

After the two team up the trail takes them to the lair of a bikie gang, then Chinatown where they meet Kala the Oracle (of sorts) who informs Chandler of the magnitude of his quest - being that he is the Chosen One after all...

Chandler also learns that the Golden Child is a once in a thousand generations birth, born specifically to rescue humanity, capable of restoring life with a touch, wise beyond reason and with the ability to make a Pepsi can dance to classic 1950s songs...

So there's that.

There is a cool oddball dream sequence and a trip to Tibet to obtain the sacred dagger that can free the imprisoned Golden Child, and a pretty hilarious scene where Chandler and Kee have to bluff the airport security to escape from Tibet.

When finally meets his nemesis Sardo Numspaa (Charles Dance) formally to discuss the dagger for child swap things heat up, before a good quickie 80s finale in which everything builds to a crescendo, the figureheads of good and evil have a showdown and all is resolved in about 6 minutes.

Perhaps The Golden Child doesn't move quite as fast as films do today and the FX - which were pretty cool in the 80s - don't hold up quite so well now, it is fun and enjoyable while it lasts and also has a few quotables, including "One of her ancestors was raped by a dragon", which is a line you don't hear every day.

Final Rating - 6.5 / 10. Not often listed among Eddie Murphy's highlights, but The Golden Child is a very solid and worthwhile - if a little dated - relic from the 80s.

The Golden Child fmovies. Like most people, I enjoyed Eddie Murphy in the 1980s with the humorous, wild movies he made. Many of the characters he played were similar: wisecracking, loud, funny and obnoxious. This is one of the wilder stories he was involved with with a very good mixture of action, romance, fantasy and comedy.

The female lead in here was an attractive actress named Charlotte Lewis. With her looks and manner, I thought she might go places, but I think this was the only hit movie she's been in.

Twenty years after "The Golden Child," I have found most of those Murphy films not the entertainment they used to be. Maybe it's just me getting older, but Eddie's constant shouting and abrasive boorishness is too much to take now. That includes this movie.

Every once in a while, Eddie Murphy will surprise you.

In a movie like "the Golden Child", especially. This is a movie you'd figure would star maybe Harrison Ford or Kurt Russell or someone. But Eddie really does work; he's smart, he's funny, he's brave, kind, courteous, thrifty, clean and everything else a hero should be.

Having been chosen to secure a mystic child who holds the key to protecting the world from complete evil (embodied perfectly by Dance), Eddie goes from California, to Nepal and back, all while the beautiful Kee Nang (Lewis) wonders if he's all he says he is and a crazy old holy man (Wong, perfect as always) knows that he is.

It's exciting, breathtaking in spots, shocking and, of course, funny. Eddie is the only action hero I know who could begin a movie by making rude remarks behind some guy reading a porno magazine and end it with smart-aleck remarks about Ed McMahon.

No problem with this "Child": it's a "Golden" find.

Nine stars. Viva Nepal!

I first saw this movie on television some years ago and frankly loved it. Charles Dance makes one of the most terrifying villains anyone can imagine. His sophistication is such a perfect contrast to the crudely good hero. I have never been much of an Eddie Murphy fan but find his irritating portrayal here a winner: a bit of "Axel Foley Through the Looking Glass". Charlotte Lewis is, to utilize a hackneyed phrase but the only one applicable, luminously gorgeous. Some scenes are wonderfully created: the dream sequence, the bird, the silly fight scenes, and the climactic confrontation. Through it all Murphy is the modern man suddenly dropped into an oriental myth, a stunned and quieter version of Kurt Russell in his oriental fantasy romp. Like that movie we have James Hong, the incomparable actor whose scenes, however short, raise the quality even of Derek. Since 1955 Hong has defined the fine supporting actor, the "class act" of his profession. "The Golden Child" is silly; it is not perfect; but it has so many redeeming features that it is an enjoyable and amusing fantasy, well worth watching. After four years I have seen "The Golden Child" again; I enjoyed it even more! It truly is great fun.