By Lars Lindahl © 1999 Lars Lindahl,
"Life" (1999), Directed by Ted Demme,
Written by Robert Ramsey and Matthew Stone ,
Starring Eddie Murphy, Martin Lawrence, Obba Babatunde, Ned Beatty, Bernie Mac, Ric James, Bokeem Woodbine, Clarence Williams III, Miguel A. Nunez Jr., R. Lee Ermey, Noah Emmerich, Ned Vaughan, Brent Jennings, Michael Taliferro, Nick Cassavetes
Grade: ** (out of four)
"Life" is a confused film that could have been more pleasing if it stuck to an idea. The film presents its audience with a 1930's gambling adventure (beginning), comic violence in a prison full of the depressed (middle), and dramatic issues of racism (end). These plots individually could be great movie ideas but together in one film it seems as if the writer could not decide which one to use so he crammed all three into one story. "Life" follows this doomed formula of mediocre story telling because it does not know which type of audience it wants to attract. However, once it tries to mix all different kinds of attractions, it does not please anyone. The film could have been a lot funnier, especially with the presence of Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence, but instead it attempts to remain serious with a slight comic twist to it. The problem is every time it tries to be funny it is not and every time it tries to be serious it is funny. With Murphy and Lawrence in this film, it is expected that these two characters will cause comedic havoc wherever they go and brighten up the environment around them. "Life" tries to do this but fails because not enough scenes are devoted for the two jokers to show their skills. The film tries too hard to prove that racism is bad, with a number of foolish stories to show this, that we never learn about any of the characters suffering from it. Tons of characters are introduced but never developed so that when they eventually disappear, they are not missed like they are supposed to. Murphy and Lawrence are supposed to receive sympathy from their viewers for being put in jail for life but they never do because not enough of their lives are shown in jail. It takes too much time for director Ted Demme to explain how and why they were put in jail. Demme uses an unnecessary unpredictable subplot during this time slot which inevitably comes back at the end to no one's surprise. If this section was edited down and more information was given about the prison life and prisoners, then maybe the film would have worked. "Life" follows two black men Claude Banks (Lawrence) and Ray Gibson (Murphy) as they are framed for murder by racist police officers in 1930's Mississippi. They must spend the rest of their lives in an all black prison for a crime they did not commit. In this prison they don't really learn anything but instead the whole time they try to find a way out. I am not sure if the characters were supposed to be changed men after this whole experience but it certainly did not appear this way. When they entered, they were cursing scheming young men, and towards the end, they were cursing scheming old men. The plot about these two men does not completely sum up the movie because there are so many unnecessary subplots with other characters (a mute and the warden's daughter have a child together, a gay man tries to discover who he really is) that completely ruin the film. These subplots are repeatedly brought back into the picture and because they are so forgettable the first time around, they must be explained the second time around as well. The film gets so confused at times that when it tries to execute its most dramatic moment, as a prisoner commits suicide by getting shot while escaping the prison, the viewer is puzzled as to what is happening. This puzzlement is, luckily, somewhat cured by the chemistry Murphy and Lawrence have in the few scenes they are given to shine together. There is an incredibly inane part in which the two stop talking, for 40 years (!!). This does not make any sense because the reason why this film is attractive at all is because of the interesting chemistry these two comedic talents might develop. In some of the more successful scenes, Lawrence and Murphy just seem to be having fun together and consequently make the movie more fun. These few and far apart scenes most likely were improvised on the spot by the actors. Especially when compared to the many and close together scenes in which cliched and forced lines are put into their mouths. This movie should have been their movie, their own play house where anything could happen. This unpredictability could have created a more interesting result than this sometimes on, mostly off film.
Grade: ** (out of four)
© 1999 Lars Lindahl
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