Nothing To Lose Chad'z rating: *** (out of 4 = good) 1997, R, 97 minutes [1 hour, 37 minutes] [comedy/crime] starring: Tim Robbins (Nick), Martin Lawrence (T. Paul), John C. McGinley (Davis "Rig" Lanlow), Giancarlo Esposito (Charlie Runt), produced by Martin and Michael Scott Bregman, Dan Jinks, written and directed by Steve Oedekerk.
Hmmm.... something's not right here. The elements that make up "Nothing To Lose" are pretty much the same old stuff: completely opposite characters who become best friends; a long road trip; many chase scenes; an intricate robbery; a few cliffhangers here and there; and some supposedly sentimental scenes. Taking this into account, it's surprising I liked this film, but I guess I shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth.
The setup to the story is so basic the film wastes no time in trying to establish details and sub-plots. Oedekerk knows you want to see the funny mismatched buddy comedy the promotions promise, and he gets right to it in less than 15 minutes.
We meet Nick (Robbins), your typical L.A. middle-aged yuppie who comes home from work early one day to find his wife having an affair. But this film is very lighthearted and instead of some piss-off scene, Nick just quietly walks out the door and drives off in his GMC Yukon not knowing where he's going. Of course when people are depressed they never make smart driving decisions and thus he ends up on the wrong side of town and is carjacked by T. Paul (a character that could only be played by Martin Lawrence). But Nick doesn't care, he goes ballistic and drives his truck all over the place in a situation that could only happen in such a Hollywood comedy. When the two find themselves way out in Arizona it's obvious the roles have reversed.
The film goes through the motions you'd expect it to, first: bickering. T. Paul can read Nick like a book and they start to argue, which then leads to the next logical step: fighting. The two don't really get in a fist-fight, instead they just wrestle around like kids - but the fact this takes place at a redneck coffee shop with characters who interact is what makes it funny.
Of course the next step is reconciliation. From here on the film becomes a funny comedy about the two being in the wrong place at the wrong time. They are mistaken for two highway robbers - Davis "Rig" Lanlow (McGinley) and Charlie Runt (Esposito) who don't like their image being clouded by Nick and T. What ensues are scenes on top of scenes of the comedic crime genre. I don't think I've ever seen a film about "accidental" crime before, nor one about a yuppie who decides to become a robber. Maybe this isn't the most realistic premise, but you have to admit it's original.
Nick and T. figure out a way to rip off thousands of dollars from Nick's boss, and the way they must go about this and the robbery itself is strange but quite funny. I've always wondered why criminals have to be so mean and the film answers this with another funny robbery scene in which the two argue with an old clerk about who was "scarier."
Although the film remains pretty consistent in terms of storytelling and comedy, it does start to weaken as the last act approaches. It's difficult to describe specific flaws without spoiling the entire story, but let's just say it doesn't live up to your expectations. On the other hand, I have to give the film credit for throwing in as many plot twists as it does.
I'm still not sure why I liked "Nothing To Lose." Was it the acting? Maybe. Robbins and Lawrence make a funny odd couple. Was it the story? Maybe. It certainly wasn't what I expected it to be. Was it the screenplay itself? Maybe. I've seen better though. So what was wrong with it? Nothing as a whole, but it's far from perfection.
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e-mail: ChadPolenz@aol.com (C) 1997 Chad Polenz
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