Liam Neeson and Pamela Anderson star in 'The Naked Gun,' a reboot of the franchise led by late actor Leslie Nielsen

Once again, a police procedural serves as the movie’s framework, complete with shadow-forming Venetian blinds and hardboiled monologuing. This time, though, thanks to Nielsen’s flinty presence (and all those “Taken” thrillers),

The action star plays deadpan detective Frank Drebin Jr. in director Akiva Schaffer’s welcome sequel to the police-parody film franchise that began in 1988.