The Blues Brothers (1980)

Jake Blues, just out from prison, puts together his old band to save the Catholic home where he and brother Elwood were raised.

Director:

John Landis

Writers:

Dan Aykroyd, John Landis

Stars:

John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, Cab Calloway

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Belushi	...	'Joliet' Jake Blues (as Jake)
Dan Aykroyd	...	Elwood Blues (as Elwood)
James Brown	...	Reverend Cleophus James
Cab Calloway	...	Curtis
Ray Charles	...	Ray
Aretha Franklin	...	Mrs. Murphy
Steve Cropper	...	Steve 'The Colonel' Cropper
Donald Dunn	...	Donald 'Duck' Dunn (as Donald 'Duck' Dunn)
Murphy Dunne	...	Murphy 'Murph' Dunne
Willie Hall	...	Willie 'Too Big' Hall
Tom Malone	...	Tom 'Bones' Malone
Lou Marini	...	'Blue Lou' Marini
Matt Murphy	...	Matt 'Guitar' Murphy
Alan Rubin	...	Alan 'Mr. Fabulous' Rubin
Carrie Fisher	...	Mystery Woman

Storyline

After the release of Jake Blues from prison, he and brother Elwood go to visit "The Penguin", the last of the nuns who raised them in a boarding school. They learn the Archdiocese will stop supporting the school and will sell the place to the Education Authority. The only way to keep the place open is if the $5000 tax on the property is paid within 11 days. The Blues Brothers want to help, and decide to put their blues band back together and raise the the money by staging a big gig. As they set off on their "mission from God" they seem to make more enemies along the way. Will they manage to come up with the money in time?

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Plot Keywords:

band | prison | catholic | police | nun | 

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Taglines:

The show that really hits the road.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Music | Musical

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 June 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

Blues Brothers

Filming Locations:

22 W. Van Buren Street, The Loop, Downtown, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$27,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$54,200,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

133 min 148 min (extended)

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (magnetic prints) Mono (optical prints)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

During filming one of the night scenes, John Belushi disappeared and could not be located. Dan Aykroyd looked around and saw a single house with its lights on. He went to the house and was prepared to identify himself, the movie and that they were looking for John Belushi. But before he could, the homeowner looked at him, smiled and said, "You're here for John Belushi, aren't you?" The homeowner then told them Belushi had entered their house, asked if he could have a glass of milk and a sandwich and then crashed on their couch. Situations like this prompted Aykroyd to affectionately dub Belushi "America's Guest".

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Goofs

During the end Jail House Rock scene, every guard is carrying a shotgun. In real prisons, guards do not carry guns due to the fact that if the prisoners riot, they would then be armed.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Prison Guard #1: Yeah, the Assistant Warden wants this one out of the block early. Wants to get it over with fast.
Prison Guard #2: Okay, let's do it.
[rattling the bars with his baton]
Prison Guard #1: Hey come on, it's time to wake up.
Prison Guard #2: Wake up. Let's go, it's time.
[striking the sleeping Jake with his baton]

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Crazy Credits

As the film ends with the Blues Brothers and band playing "Jailhouse Rock", there are several cuts starting with the second verse that feature the castmembers who are professional singers singing lines of the song with their names on the screen.

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Connections

Featured in The Nostalgia Critic: Doug's 1st Movie (2011)

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Soundtracks

"SHAKE YOUR MONEYMAKER"
Written by Elmore James
Performed by Elmore James
Courtesy of Trip Records

User Reviews

Don't you miss comedies like this?

The Blues Brothers is definitely in my book one of the best comedies of all time. I couldn't believe my eyes that this film is not on the top 250, well, John Landis doesn't get enough credit in all. He brought us the most memorable comedies of all time: An American Werewolf in London, Trading Places, Animal House, and Kentucky Fried Chicken. He brings us The Blues Brothers, two popular characters off of Saturday Night Live who were at the height of their popularity. John puts them in Chicago(this is the best Chicago movie to watch next to Ferris Bueller by the way)and makes this into one of the greatest comedies ever. The great thing about this film is it's not gross out, it's not the obvious silly humor, it's just humor that keeps you laughing every minute. Dan and John are such a great comedic duo, they are without a doubt the most memorable duo off of SNL I would say.

Jake and Elwood go to the orphanage where they were raised and learn that it is being shut down due to insufficient funds, so they want to reunite their band and put on a show to help save the place. On a mission from God they claim, they gather up their old band members to put on the show of the decade! But along the way, Jake and Elwood get into quite a bit of trouble with the police, the Illinois Nazi party, a girlfriend of one of their band members, and a girl who just seems to keep going after them and wants them dead.

With great and endless cameos from great people like Aretha Franklin and Ray Charles, terrific Chicago landmarks, endless hilarious jokes, The Blues Brothers is the perfect comedy that is one of the best movies of all time. The concert scene is unforgettable and the scene that will always get me down on the floor in tears is where they go to the restaurant, John's line of "How much for your women?!" was just too priceless! You really have to see this movie, I guarantee you, you will die of laughter.

10/10