Life (1999/I)

Director:

Ted Demme

Writers (WGA):

Robert Ramsey (written by) &
Matthew Stone (written by)

Release Date:

16 April 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Drama

Tagline:

Share it with someone you love.

Plot:

The story of two criminals (Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence) who discover the value of life after being sentenced to life imprisonment.

Plot Keywords:

Sheriff | Life Imprisonment | Flashback | Watch | Criminal

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win & 3 nominations

Cast

Eddie Murphy	...	Rayford Gibson
Martin Lawrence	...	Claude Banks
Obba Babatundé	...	Willie Long
Nick Cassavetes	...	Sergeant Dillard
Anthony Anderson	...	Cookie
Barry Shabaka Henley	...	Pokerface
Brent Jennings	...	Hoppin' Bob
Bernie Mac	...	Jangle Leg
Miguel A. Núñez Jr.	...	Biscuit
Michael Taliferro	...	Goldmouth (as Michael 'Bear' Taliferro)
Guy Torry	...	Radio
Bokeem Woodbine	...	Can't Get Right
Ned Beatty	...	Dexter Wilkins
Lisa Nicole Carson	...	Sylvia
O'Neal Compton	...	Superintendant Abernathy

MPAA:

Rated R for strong language and a shooting.

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color | Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Finland:K-12 | South Korea:15 | Argentina:13 | Australia:MA | Canada:14A | Canada:G (Quebec) | Chile:14 | Germany:12 | Ireland:15 | New Zealand:M | UK:15 | USA:R (certificate #36417) | Singapore:PG (cut) | Philippines:PG-13 | Brazil:14

Filming Locations:

Front Street, Norwalk, California, USA

Company:

Imagine Entertainment

Trivia:

Ray and Claude arrive at the Mississippi prison in 1932. They spend give 65 years in jail, meaning the last year the movie takes place in is 1997. And Ray says in that year that he's 90 years old, meaning he was born in 1907 (Claude was also probably born in that year or somewhere close to it). So they were 25 when they came to jail, 37 when they are shown in the 1944, and 65 when they are shown in 1972.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: In the scene where Claude is picking up Sheriff Pike from the Greyhound bus station, a Black man carrying a boom box walked by. He was listening to the song Fortunate by Maxwell that wasn't released until the year 2000.

Quotes:

[last lines]
Dexter Wilkins: [on learning Pike framed Ray Gibson and Claude Banks] Is there any truth in what this man said?
Older Sheriff Pike: What the hell difference does it make? At least the state of Mississippi got forty years of cheap labor out of the deal!

Movie Connections:

References Harlem Nights (1989)

Soundtrack:

Fortunate

One of Murphy's most underrated films

Sure,Eddie Murphy has gotten credit over the years for being the comic genius that he is,but he does not always get proper credit for his movie work.1999's Life is a good example of Murphy getting overlooked.He does great work here,along with Martin Lawrence(whom I am not a huge fan of, but I must give him due credit here)as two men wrongly sentenced to life imprisonment.This is an excellent story,and casting Murphy and Lawrence in the lead roles is nothing short of a perfect idea.I never would have thought of them as a great team,but I was pleasantly surprised here.A must see for any die hard Eddie Murphy fan.