NateWatchesCoolMovies
Ted Demme's Life is a hard one to classify or box into genres, which may have been why it didn't do all that great at the box office and subsequently slipped through the cracks, a result that often befalls ambitious, unique films that people aren't ready to surrender to. Part comedy, part tragedy, all drama infused with just a bit of whimsy, it's a brilliant piece and one of the most underrated outings from both of it's high profile stars, Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence. It seems fitting that the two lively, cartoonish cowboys of comedy should share the screen, and it's lucky they got such a wicked script. In the roaring twenties, Murphy is smooth talking petty thief Ray, Lawrence is hapless, hot blooded bank teller Claude, and the pair couldn't be more suited or dysfunctional towards each other. Brought together for an ill fated moonshine run bankrolled by a nasty NYC Gangster (Rick James), things go wrong in the most auspicious of places a black man could find himself during that time: Mississippi. Framed for the murder of a local conman (Clarence Williams III) by a psychotic, corrupt Sheriff (Ned Vaughn), they're given life in prison by the judge, and this is where their peculiar adventure really begins. Put under the supervision of a violent but oddly sympathetic corrections officer played awesomely by Nick Cassavetes, the two wrongfully convicted, hard-luck fellows spend their entire adult life and most of the twentieth century incarcerated... and that's the film. Squabbling year by year, making a whole host of friends out of their fellow convicts and never losing their sense of humour, it's the one of the strangest narratives I've seen, and somehow works wonders in keeping us glued to the screen. Supporting the two leads is a legendary ensemble including Ned Beatty as warm hearted superintendent, Anthony Anderson, Bernie Mac, Bokeem Woodbine, Barry Shabaka Henley, Heavy D, Don Harvey, Noah Emmerich, Obba Babatundé, Sanaa Latham, R. Lee Ermey and more. Murphy and Lawrence have never been better, shining through Rick Baker's wicked old age makeup in the latter portion of the film, and letting the organic outrage and frustration towards their situation pepper the many instances of humour, accenting everything with their friendship, which is the core element really. The film's title, simple as it, has a few meanings, at least for me. Life as in 'life in prison', in it's most literal and outright sense. Life as in 'well tough shit, that's life and it ain't always pretty,' another reality shared with us by the story. But really it's something more oblique, the closest form of explanation I can give being 'life happens.' There's no real social issues explored here, no heavy handed agenda (had the film been released in this day and age, that would have almost certainly been a different story), no real message, we just see these events befall the two men. They roll with each new development, they adapt and adjust, they learn, they live. In a medium that's always being plumbed and mined for deeper meanings, subtext and allegories, it's nice to see a picture that serves up the human condition without all those lofty bells and whistles. Their story is random, awkward, unpredictable, never short on irony, seldom fair, often tragic, and ever forward moving. That's Life.
Alan Resul
Life (1999) The extremely comedic movie Life starring Ray Gibson (Eddie Murphy) and Claude Banks (Martin Lawrence), taking place in the 1920s, is, in a nutshell, about a con artist Ray Gibson, and Claude Banks, who served 65 years of a life sentence for a crime neither of them never committed. One significant aspect of the movie that made it very charming, was the fact that Ray and Claude hardly got along during those 65 years they spent together, but then in the end they ended up being best friends when they were old and free, which you can see in the end when you see them together at a baseball game enjoying each other's company after had fooled everyone that they died in a tragic fire. However it wasn't all happiness in this movie, it did have some sadness in it too, for example when you got to know all the inmates that were imprisoned with Claude and Ray, you regarded them as family. But then as you keep watching the movie you see them all going away one by one, which was very sad. All in all it was a great movie that was filled with comedy, inconvenience and a grain of sadness too, which made it into the crazy adventurous movie that is Life.
hot_in_pink_hate_red
I thought this movie was funny, but also serious as well. Showing how it was back in the late 30s when African Americans were framed for crimes they never committed and were throw in jail. Another thing it showed was how only a few African Americans could read and write. The film is very accurate when it depicts the life of African Americans who have been imprisoned wrongfully.Eddie Murphy's portrayal of Ray Gibson is flawless and touching, showing how he can be funny, tough, difficult, but loving at times. Martin Lawrence portrayal of Claude Banks is flawless as well, making as a believably imitated, hopeful, intellectual, dignified, and at times... heartbroken man. The late Bernie Mac short portrayal of a Gay inmate is funny and helps reminds you that this film is also a Comedy, not just a Drama. Th rest of the cast is good as well in both being funny and serious.Eddie's Dramatic acting is just as good as his Comedic acting and must NEVER be ignored!
