Nothing to Lose (1997)

Nick's wife's in bed with his boss. He later gets a gun to his head by a carjacker but steps on the gas pedal. They end up friends after adventures together - holdups, burglary, reckless driving, revenge etc. Twists follow.

Director:

Steve Oedekerk

Writer:

Steve Oedekerk

Stars:

Martin Lawrence, Tim Robbins, John C. McGinley

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Martin Lawrence	...	Terrance Paul Davidson
Tim Robbins	...	Nick Beam
John C. McGinley	...	Davis 'Rig' Lanlow
Giancarlo Esposito	...	Charlie Dunt
Kelly Preston	...	Ann Beam
Michael McKean	...	Phillip "P.B" Barrow
Rebecca Gayheart	...	Danielle
Susan Barnes	...	Delores
Irma P. Hall	...	Bertha 'Mama' Davidson
Samaria Graham	...	Lisa Davidson
Marcus T. Paulk	...	Joey Davidson (as Marcus Paulk)
Penny Bae Bridges	...	Tonya Davidson
Steve Oedekerk	...	Security Guard Baxter
Mary Jo Keenen	...	Grace
Lisa Mende	...	Emma

Storyline

When a man (Robbins) believes he has discovered that his wife is having an affair with his boss, it sets off a chain reaction of events. First he wanders into a ghetto where a robber (Lawrence) tries to take his money at gunpoint, but instead sets a wild ride from California to Arizona. The two eventually become reluctant friends. Discussing robbery techniques, they decide to get back at the boss by robbing an office safe containing hundreds of thousands of dollars. Life is further complicated by another pair of robbers who chase the first two for infringing on their territory.

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Plot Keywords:

neo screwball comedy | arizona desert | arizona territory | robber | boss | 

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Taglines:

When the odds are against you, sometimes the only bet is yourself.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Crime

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for pervasive strong language and a sex scene

Did You Know?

Trivia

Despite the fact that this was filmed in the standard spherical format, "Filmed in Panavision" is listed in the end credits.

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Goofs

In the scene where Martin Lawrence's character returns home for the second time, and his children come and sit with him, you see the son kneel on his crotch, and Martin Lawrence winces, laughs, and briefly looks at various points in the room, assumingly at crew members.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Nick Beam: Where do I start? It's not you. Well actually it is you. Look, I'm just not... I'm not attracted to you anymore. I need space. You kinda... you kinda gross me out. In the beginning it was different. In the beginning, you were better. But then I got to know you real well, and I came to realize... that you're a fat idiot.

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Crazy Credits

After the credits are finished, a mailman brings a letter to the hillbilly whose gas station was robbed. The letter is marked "Hillbilly Motherfucker", just as T. called him in the movie. Inside is a few hundred dollars cash. In the cut version this is changed to "Hillbilly at the gas station".

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Alternate Versions

When aired on USA in 2001, all the bad language usage was removed and redubbed. Also the scene where Nick asks Manny if he's ever had a really bad day and Manny says he's having one right now; Martin Lawrence's sentence of "you got a funny way of not robbing the motherfucker" was changed to "then you definately need to brush up on consumer edicate."; The ending shown after the credits where a mail man brings an envelope marked "Hillbilly Motherfucker" to the Oasis Gas Station owner filled with cash was not shown.

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Connections

Referenced in Be Kind Rewind (2008)

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Soundtracks

Get Down With Me
Written and Produced by William Stewart
Performed by Amari featuring Buckshot
Amari courtesy of Tommy Boy Records
Buckshot courtesy of Duck Down Entaprizez Ltd.

User Reviews

Best Black Guy, White Guy Comedy ever

Even better than Trading Places. (I will only spoil the first 20 minutes.) Nick Beam, well played by Tim Robbins, is an upper-middle class white man with a pretty wife, a successful career in advertising, and a nice home. His marriage seems happy, but one day he comes home early and sees his wife straddling another man in their bed. He doesn't say anything. She doesn't even know he was there. He finds his boss's cuff links on the way out, and therefore realises that it was his boss whom his wife was on top of.

After driving in a daze at about 20 miles an hour, Nick Beam wanders into the ghetto. This is where Terrance, played by Martin Laurence, attempts to mug him. Well, Nick Beam is so depressed that he really doesn't value his own life, and takes Terrance for a little ride.

The rest of the movie is filled with their crazy adventures. A few robberies, and Tim's gradual transformation into a criminal. There is a hilarious scene where Tim has a spider on his head, freaks out, and... well you'll see. That scene alone would have made the movie worth watching even if the rest were terrible. But fortunately, there is plenty more wacky adventures for these two before the twist at the end.

Most of this is comedy, but it does get a little serious at certain parts. How could the producers contrast the lives of a well-to-do white man with a struggling black man from the ghetto without going into social injustices? Nick Beam accuses Terrance of laziness and wasting his time robbing people instead of finding a job. Terrance never goes into details, but just tells Nick not to judge him. Then, Nick discovered several rejection letters to Terrance from potential employers. Furthermore, Terrance, a mugger, has a wife and kids and he seems to be a good father to them. It looks like Terrance is more than a common thug.

Lastly, I complement the musical choices. The spider dance scene was to the song, I think its called, 'The Scott Man.' Something like that. Its funny. Later in the movie, Pachebel's 'Canon' is played. The song at the end of the movie is a rap to the music of 'Canon.' I don't normally like rap, but I liked that, very creative.

I give the movie a perfect 10. Its not a copy of Trading Places at all, but it does have a similar theme, rich white guy, poor black guy. This is one of the few movies that has made me laugh uncontrollably for more than a few seconds at a time. If you haven't seen it, watch it, and you will watch it many more times after, I guarantee.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 July 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

Nothing to Lose

Filming Locations:

Club Ed Film Set - 150th Street E, Lancaster, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$11,617,767, 20 July 1997

Gross USA:

$44,480,039

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$44,480,039

Company Credits

Production Co:

O Entertainment, Touchstone Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1