• Life (1999)

    During Prohibition, loudmouth Harlem grifter Ray (Eddie Murphy) and the no-nonsense Claude (Martin Lawrence) team up on a bootlegging mission to Mississippi that could bring them big bucks. But they run into trouble when a crooked lawman hits them with a phony murder charge. Ray and Claude are given life sentences and shipped off to jail, where they must think of a way to prove their innocence and avoid the brutal guards while battling their biggest enemies -- their opposing personalities.

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Life
63
metacriticBased on 20 Critics
90
Based on 54 Users

Release Date: April 16th, 1999

DVD Release Date: October 19th, 1999

R |1 hr 48 min

Plot Summary

During Prohibition, loudmouth Harlem grifter Ray (Eddie Murphy) and the no-nonsense Claude (Martin Lawrence) team up on a bootlegging mission to Mississippi that could bring them big bucks. But they run into trouble when a crooked lawman hits them with a phony murder charge. Ray and Claude are given life sentences and shipped off to jail, where they must think of a way to prove their innocence and avoid the brutal guards while battling their biggest enemies -- their opposing personalities.

Cast: Eddie Murphy, Martin Lawrence, Obba Babatunde, Ned Beatty, Bernie Mac, Miguel A. Núñez Jr., Clarence Williams III, Bokeem Woodbine

Director: Ted Demme

Genres: Comedy drama

Production Co: Universal Pictures, Imagine Entertainment

Distributors: MCA/Universal Pictures [us]

Keywords: 1930s, Prison, Amusing, 1970s, Playful, 1940s, Underdog, 1990s, Quest, Escape

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Cast & Crew

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Ratings & Reviews

  • 75
    David SterrittChristian Science Monitor

    No show-business tradition is sturdier than the two-man comedy team, and no contemporary stars are better suited to the format than Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence. Pairing them was a terrific idea. show more

  • 75
    Michael WilmingtonChicago Tribune

    Life can be funny, sad, conventional, unpredictable -- or a pain in the tail. And so can Life, the new Eddie Murphy movie. [16 April 1999, Tempo, p.4]

  • 75
    Roger EbertChicago Sun-Times

    The movie is ribald, funny and sometimes sweet, and well acted by Murphy, Lawrence and a strong supporting cast. show more

See all critic reviews on metacritic.com

Awards

Nominated Makeup
Oscars Academy Awards (1999)