OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY
A film review by Ken Johnson
Copyright 1991 Ken Johnson
90 min, R, Comedy, 1991 Director: Norman Jewison Cast: Danny DeVito, Gregory Peck, Penelope Ann Miller, Piper Laurie
Danny DeVito owns a business that buys up businesses that are worth more money dead than alive. Then, after the business has been bought up, the company liquidates the business and makes money. DeVito sets his sights on a small company based in Rhode Island called New England Wire and Cable, which is making very little but could be worth a lot of money. When the owners of New England Wire and Cable find out what DeVito plans to do they hire lawyer Penelope Ann Miller to help save the business.
OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY is rated R for explicit language, adult situations, and adult humor. I give OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY a three on a zero to five scale. This film is not Danny DeVito's best film, but, it is not his worst. (His worst film, in my opinion, was a 1972 Italian film called LADY LIBERTY which was directed by Mario Manicelli.) I don't suggest seeing OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY for full price but it is well worth seeing at a matinee price or you might want to wait until OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY comes to video.
One of the two major problems with this film is that it tries to be a comedy while also trying to be a drama. In some cases this would work, but not totally in this film. The film tries to portray a serious message and then makes you laugh. What usually ends up happening is that people forget the message that they just heard. The other problem that I think hurt this film is that when an actor becomes a star, the film industry figures that anyone will go see the film. The film industry doesn't put as much money into writing the film as they maybe should hoping that the star can carry the film. That might be the case for this film.
Don't get me wrong, OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY is a very funny film, it just could have been better. Danny DeVito is able to carry the film through the slow spots it hits and Penelope Ann Miller puts in a great performance. In short, okay film especially if you are a big fan of Danny DeVito.
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