We watched Beverly Hills Cop last night with Jonathan and Renee’s parents. I remember that being one of the first (or at least one of the earliest) VHS tapes my parents bought for our new-fangled VCR when I was a kid. What a great movie. And it’s still great. Eddie Murphy is just naturally funny and engaging on screen.

As the movie ended, though, I also thought that it felt more like an episode than a movie. It’s action-packed, no doubt, but its density pales in comparison to the content of a modern marquee film. And, thinking about streaming series on Netflix and such, it feels like an episode, or more likely two, of a one or two season show.

It really gave me a reminder of how different today’s media is from that of my childhood. Despite that, though, there’s no looking down on that movie. It’s still wonderful.