Life (1999)

50% of critics liked it
(54 reviews)
73% of users liked it
(48,483 ratings)

Comedians Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence team up for a story that wouldn't appear to have many immediate humorous possibilities -- two men serving life sentences in prison for a crime they did not commit. Life opens in Harlem in 1932, where Ray Gibson (Eddie Murphy) is a small-time con man in debt… More Comedians Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence team up for a story that wouldn't appear to have many immediate humorous possibilities -- two men serving life sentences in prison for a crime they did not commit. Life opens in Harlem in 1932, where Ray Gibson (Eddie Murphy) is a small-time con man in debt to Spanky, a gangster (Rick James). Ray spots would-be bank teller Claude Banks (Martin Lawrence) at a gambling spot and, figuring him for an easy mark, lifts his wallet -- only to discover Claude is broke. Ray and Claude's mutual need to raise some cash brings them together when Spanky offers them a job bringing back a load of moonshine from bootleggers in the deep south. However, things don't go well for Ray and Claude, and they're arrested by a sheriff in Mississippi who recently killed a man and needs someone on whom he can hang the charge. Since Ray and Claude are black, from out of town and have been caught red-handed with a load of illegal liquor, the sheriff figures they're easy pickings and frames them for the murder. Soon the two men are inmates in a Southern work camp, where they spend the next 55 years learning to get along with the other inmates, avoiding the wrath of the guards, seeing younger prisoners come and go and never losing hope that someday, somehow, their innocence will be proven and they'll be released. Life is the second screen pairing for Murphy and Lawrence, who also shared screen time in 1992's Boomerang, and was scripted by Robert Ramsey and Matthew Stone from an original idea by Murphy. The supporting cast includes Ned Beatty, Clarence Williams III, Bernie Mac, Nick Cassavetes and R. Lee Ermey. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 48 min.
Directed By: Ted Demme
Written By: Robert Ramsey, Matthew Stone
Genres: Comedy

In Theaters: Apr 16, 1999 Wide
On DVD: Oct 19, 1999
Studio: Universal Pictures

Critic Reviews

Todd McCarthy, Variety
Lively, packed with colorful characters and spiked with outbursts of outrageous banter!
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly
Life desperately wants to let Murphy and Lawrence be actors, but it can't imagine them as anything more than rowdy showmen.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Ribald, funny and sometimes sweet, and well acted by Murphy, Lawrence and a strong supporting cast.
Sean Means, Film.com
Life plays more like This Is Your Life for Eddie Murphy, cobbling together elements from his earlier, funnier movies.
Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune
Funny, sad, conventional, unpredictable -- just like the real thing!
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid
Life is a surprise that not only avoids typical trappings, but throws in a tinge of the bittersweet as well.
Rob Gonsalves, eFilmCritic.com
Murphy and Lawrence never quite move beyond shtick.
Pablo Villaca, Cinema em Cena
Não há atuação que resista a um roteiro fraco como o deste filme.
Chuck Rudolph, Matinee Magazine
Face it folks: Eddie Murphy just ain't funny anymore.

Read all 9 critic reviews

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

Directors C

Life is a much under rated comedy film. Something you wouldn't really expect from murphy and lawrence is a film as depressing as this is. Its well acted and it's entertaning therefore it's not getting the credit it deserves.
Spencer S

It wasn't especially funny, or dramatic, and the entire angle on becoming the next Shawshank Redemption fell through entirely. The very poster is trying to convey that this will be another Nutty Professor, a laugh riot based on the humor that defined the 90's, but this film… More
It wasn't especially funny, or dramatic, and the entire angle on becoming the next Shawshank Redemption fell through entirely. The very poster is trying to convey that this will be another Nutty Professor, a laugh riot based on the humor that defined the 90's, but this film is a stale substitute for the real thing. Quite disappointing.
Anthony L

I really like this film. Martin Lawrence is such a moody little shit though, does he ever smile?
A.D. V

It's humor is erratic and maybe a little too long but it's still a damn sight better than any of that Nutty Doolittle stuff. "Hey, girl! You gonna eat yo' cornbread?"
Nani V

I thought it was a very interesting movie. I especially love the ending. =)
Candy R

Martin and Eddie are imprisoned for a crime they didn't commit. Funny love hate relationship between the pair.
Lafe F

Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence are framed for murder and spend the rest of their lives in jail. The end. Nope, not quite - they have some funny and touching adventures while they are in their assigned chain gang work camp. Most of the other cons are really nice; they're mostly… More
Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence are framed for murder and spend the rest of their lives in jail. The end. Nope, not quite - they have some funny and touching adventures while they are in their assigned chain gang work camp. Most of the other cons are really nice; they're mostly a bunch of friends. Nothing perverse occurs, okay? As they grow older and greyer, some of their pals die off, in a touching montage of time passing and people disappearing from the scene, literally. When Eddie and Martin age, they move up in rank as house servants for the warden. It was a decent movie and wasn't too much in-your-face.
Jason S

I liked this movie and thought it was very funny and thoughtful. It reminded me of Harlem Nights.
danny d

has some funny parts, decent flick
Khris N

I liked this one alot - i like prison based flicks - so two thumbs up!!
rocko p

One wrongly accused race motivated arrest led to 70 years of comedy.
Remi L

"You want yo cornbread?"
Jared H

This is a pretty underrated movie, and sadly forgotten. Even I forgot about it until I saw it on cable this morning, and was immediately reminded of how great it was. Eddie Murphy's performance is in a league of its own...whether he aims for drama or comedy in this… More
This is a pretty underrated movie, and sadly forgotten. Even I forgot about it until I saw it on cable this morning, and was immediately reminded of how great it was. Eddie Murphy's performance is in a league of its own...whether he aims for drama or comedy in this "dramedy," he really delivers it in pitch-perfect fashion.
Leo L

Very funny!