1983 / 116m - USA
Comedy
2.5*/5.0*
Trading Places poster

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December 12, 2021

2.5*/5.0*

A classic 80s comedy from John Landis. It's little more than a pairing of Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy, who are both allowed to perform their usual tricks. The film gets a bit grim and unpleasant in places and the plot is very basic, but the film does have a couple of memorable moments.

Two power-hungry misers are having a wager after a short nature versus nurture discussion. To see who is right, they pick up a petty thief from the street and make him manager of their company, whilst demoting the current manager and getting him jailed for stealing and selling drugs.

Aykroyd and Murphy are decent, though the latter has the best scenes. The plot is predictable, Landis isn't the most gifted director and the runtime is a bit excessive, but the premise is solid enough and there were a couple of funny moments. Hardly the comedy some make it out to be, but it's not the worst film either.