Big Trouble (2002)

User Rating:

6.3/10   

Director:

Barry Sonnenfeld

Writers (WGA):

Dave Barry (novel)
Robert Ramsey (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

5 April 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Thriller

Tagline:

These people are in big trouble:

Plot:

The lives of several Miami denizens, from ad agents to gunrunners to street thugs to law enforcement to school-children, intersect with humorous and dangerous results.

Plot Keywords:

Airport | FBI | Black Comedy | Security Guard | Sniper

Cast

Tim Allen	...	Eliot Arnold
Rene Russo	...	Anna Herk
Stanley Tucci	...	Arthur Herk
Tom Sizemore	...	Snake Dupree
Johnny Knoxville	...	Eddie Leadbetter
Dennis Farina	...	Henry Desalvo
Jack Kehler	...	Leonard Ferroni
Janeane Garofalo	...	Police Officer Monica Romero
Patrick Warburton	...	Police Officer Walter Kramitz
Ben Foster	...	Matt Arnold
Zooey Deschanel	...	Jenny Herk
Heavy D	...	FBI Agent Pat Greer (as Dwight 'Heavy D' Myers)
Omar Epps	...	FBI Agent Alan Seitz
Jason Lee	...	Puggy
Sofía Vergara	...	Nina

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for language, crude humor and sex-related, material.

Runtime:

85 min | Turkey:74 min (TV version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

South Korea:15 | Netherlands:12 (VHS/DVD rating) | Netherlands:6 | Australia:M | Denmark:7 | Finland:K-11 | Germany:12 | Singapore:PG | Spain:13 | UK:12 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #38239) | Iceland:L | Canada:PG (Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Miami, Florida, USA

Company:

Touchstone Pictures

Trivia:

Patrick Warburton's line, "It's built by Ford now" in relation to the Jaguar automobiles, was also used in The Crew (2000/I). Barry Sonnenfeld suspects the line is cursed, as neither film did well at the box office.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The cockpit shots of one of the F-16s shows the control stick between the pilot's legs. In the F-16, the control stick is on the right side of the cockpit.

Quotes:

Henry Desalvo: [back at his table] You go tell your employer it's gonna cost him another 10 G's apiece.
His Boss: Okay. But we want this finished as soon as possible.
Henry Desalvo: Well, believe me, we don't want to spend anymore time in this garden spot than we have to.
Leonard: Got that right.

Movie Connections:

Spoofs Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

Soundtrack:

Macho Man

Not bad...

I've seen one user comment here already that unfairly compares Big Trouble with Snatch or Pulp Fiction, but that's really neither here nor there. Big Trouble is intended for an entirely different audience, and while it never reaches the mighty heights of the former, it does a big crap on the latter because it never takes itself too seriously. It recognises that the audience doesn't want a film as a fashion statement, but merely as a form of entertainment. The makers also recognise that they don't have the material here to entertain and inform at the same time, so they just concentrate on making the best comedy that they can. It is for this reason most of all that they succeed.

The strengths of this film are actors like Tim Allen, Jason Lee, Dennis Farina, and Tom Sizemore. I never thought I would say that about Allen, but it appears that when you give him decent material, he can actually make something out of it. Jason Lee is a pleasant surprise as the unwashed hippie who seems to just magically appear in a tree (you have to see it to believe it). Tom Sizemore, however, really steals the show as the thug who just doesn't quite seem to have the brainpower to do anything correctly.

Put simply, this is a crime caper that was intended for families who want to be able to take their pre-teen children to something with this kind of plot and not be worried about the content. Whether you agree with this marketing philosophy or not, it does allow for success of a different kind, namely that it succeeds because it is so unreal that the viewer can laugh without getting disgusted by some of the characters.

The things that detract from this comedy are some weak supporting actors. Zooey Deschanel even gives the camera the old "stunned mullet" look at times, while Patrick Warburton only seems to know one expression. Stanley Tucci can't give us anything to sympathise with his character over, and Sofia Vergara seems completely doomed to be a bit player for whatever little career she might have. The running length is a bit of a two-edged sword - on one hand, it makes sure that the film is never boring, and no scene goes on for longer than its welcome. On the other hand, possibilities for interesting subplots are often passed over.

In the end, I gave the film a seven out of ten. It's not rocket science, but if you sit back in your chair with a beer and some popcorn, preferably with some friends to share your disbelief with, it makes a good piece of entertainment that won't make you wish you could have those 85 or so minutes back. Recommended for those in a light-hearted mood.