*I write these articles under the assumption that you’ve seen the movie, so...SPOILERS.
There’s little rhyme or reason to the movies I’ve chosen to watch lately (though I plan on making more timely picks in the future, picking movies that have something to do with current releases or events or holidays, etc.), and this week is no different. I simply realized it had been a while since I wrote about one of the comedies I own. Nothing to Lose seemed like a good choice because it had been a while since I had watched it, and I wanted to see if it held up for me. While watching it, I realized something about the main character, and I wondered what happened to the writer/director Steve Oedekerk (whose other two movies that I own, Kung Pow: Enter the Fist and Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls, I’ll write about in the future). Let’s start with the main character of Nothing to Lose: Nick Beam.
Nick is a dick.
So the entire plot of this movie is based on the fact that Nick thinks his wife is cheating on him. In his slight defense, he does come home to find his boss’s cuff links on the counter, and then sees what appears to be his naked wife having sex with (presumably) his boss in their marital bed. It’s a devastating betrayal, made that much worse because the film has established Nick’s boss as an unfuckable dildo at this point, and the film began with Nick and his wife fake divorcing each other. So Nick ends up having a wild weekend of crime and zany antics with his carjacker/new best friend Martin Lawrence.
I’m not one to dwell on little details that would make a film cease to exist (like Nick immediately confronting his wife, revealing it to actually be his sister-in-law instead or Nick calling his wife at least later that day instead of waiting for all of his horrible deeds to have been done), but I have to point out, at least, that Nick is a dick, and he gets off way too easy by the end of the film. So I can accept the necessary details of the film, even if they are a bit unbelievable. But I do not accept Nick getting off so easy.
First off, he’s an asshole to Martin Lawrence. Yes, Martin tried to carjack him, but even after they develop a slight friendship, he still belittles Martin every chance he gets. Martin can handle it, so that makes it less of a problem. And yeah, being a dick to a guy who tried to rob you at gunpoint is understandable. Still, he definitely uses Martin when convenient and only has a change of heart after he meets Martin’s family. It’s like Martin wasn’t a human until that point. But Nick does get Martin a job at the end, so that’s something. And it’s a hell of a lot better than how Nick treats his wife.
Nick’s wife lets him off the hook at end by replying, “No, you dick!” when Nick asks, “So you weren’t cheating on me?” Sure, she rightfully calls him a dick, but that’s it? Your husband disappears for an entire weekend, you find out he did so because he thought you were having an affair with his boss, and you just want him to come home, end of story? She should be so much more pissed off with him. And it’s the cheating accusation that should bother her the most. For Nick to believe that her cheating is a possibility is a huge issue for their relationship. Sure, it’s a bit messed up that her sister thought it was cool to bang her boyfriend in their bed, but still, Nick should have thought, “That can’t be her,” instead of immediately believing it was and going off on a zany adventure. Nick’s wife should at least confront him in a more significant way about this. But it is a comedy, so I assume that’s why she’s so forgiving. But did she get all the details?
This is an odd comparison, but this movie is similar to Eyes Wide Shut. The main character questions the strength of his relationship, and he goes off on a wild night of temptation and danger before returning home, eventually revealing all to his wife to rebuild their marriage. The main issue with the comparison is that we don’t know what Nick tells his wife whereas Tom Cruise says to Nicole Kidman, “I’ll tell you everything.”
Does Nick’s wife know about all the crimes he committed? More importantly, does she know he was seconds away from cheating on her? Something tells me he left that part of his night out of the story. At least it’s that moment that seems to make him realize he needs to talk to his wife because he’s incapable of cheating himself. That doesn’t change the fact that he made out and got into bed with another woman, and his wife did nothing at all.
Because of this, I believe resentment is bound to build up in their marriage. And Nick’s wife will finally reach a breaking point and end their marriage. And I hope she does it by fucking his boss for real.
What happened to Steve Oedekerk?
I love movies of all kind, but there will always be a special place in my heart for stupid comedies that I can watch as pure escapism from time to time. Nothing to Lose is one of those movies. I know that I can put this movie on at the end of the night, and I can fall asleep while watching it. That sounds like a dig on the film, but it’s not. I enjoy movies that are interesting and funny to me while also being silly enough to ignore and lose consciousness while watching. Whereas, if I put on There Will Be Blood or something at the end of the night, it might hook me in and keep me up for two and a half hours. (I am proud of myself for finding a way to mention There Will Be Blood and Eyes Wide Shut in an article about Nothing to Lose.)
So dumb comedies are special to me, and write/director Steve Oedekerk made three of these movies in a row. It began with Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls, which came out in 1995; I was 11, which made it perfect for my sense of humor at the time (who am I kidding, it’s still a good fit for my current sense of humor). Even at 11, I noticed that this sequel to the Jim Carrey animal detective movie was dumber than the original, but I didn’t care. In fact, even though I consider the first movie much better, the sequel still has a lot of moments that I find to be the funniest of the two films (I’ll go into much more detail with a whole post about this movie in the future).
When Nature Calls was pretty successful ($108 million), which allowed Oedekerk to make Nothing to Lose, which made $44 million on a $25 million budget. That’s not a runaway hit, but pretty decent for an R-rated comedy. And that allowed Oedekerk to make Kung Pow, which ended up getting some terrible reviews (less than 20% on RT), and only making $17 million on a $10 million dollar budget. I loved Kung Pow when it came out (and will write a full article about it in the future as well), but I can see why people did not care for it. It is as silly and dumb as movies get.
Then Oedekerk made a bunch of parody shorts with thumbs? Oh, and he made an animated movie, Barnyard, that didn’t have much of an impact. And since then...nothing. I’m sure he still punches up comedy scripts and whatnot, but he hasn’t had a produced credit since 2011. I just wonder what happened to him. Sure, his movies weren’t critical darlings, and they only turned modest profits, but is this enough to warrant this complete shutdown in production?
I still think there’s a place for Oedkerk’s brand of comedy. I enjoyed the R-rated comedy of Nothing to Lose (mainly because it allowed Martin Lawrence to cuss a lot), but When Nature Calls and Kung Pow are both PG-13, and I find them very funny. That takes a special kind of talent, and that seems to be missing in comedy today. Things are either super R-rated or super childish. Oedekerk found a middle ground.
Maybe the Oedekerk type of comedy is just a thing of the past. I hope not. But until (or if) he gets another chance to make another movie, I’ll just have to enjoy the dumb trilogy he gave us in the late 90s/early 2000s.
Why do I own this?
I own a lot of random comedies from this era, and this one definitely got watched a ton of times by me and my friends years ago. I like having these movies on hand for multiple reasons. First, I like the nostalgia I feel when I rewatch a comedy that I haven’t seen in years. Second, I enjoy having these movies on hand that allow me to shut off my brain and just watch them. Finally, it’s interesting to see what jokes I missed years ago and what I find funny today compared to back then.
Random Thoughts
I wonder how often people confuse this with Nothing but Trouble?
Main characters working at ad agencies seems to be a very '90s trope.
I'm basically obsessed with movie music at this point, but the music in this film also screams '90s comedy. I kind of miss music like that.
So the two people banging at the house are his sister-in-law and her fiance. Fine, but why were they in their bed? They don't have a guest room? What a couple of dicks!
It's a bit racist that as soon as he drives into the "bad part" of town, rap music starts playing, and he's carjacked immediately.
God, I love Martin Lawrence in this movie: "Welcome to hell, biiiiiiiiiiiiiiitch!"
"Helen Keller, I'm talkin' to you!"
"Hey, please don't kill me, freaky Jason."
"I'm gonna 'one time' yo ass."
"That's what I'da told the bitch."
"Persistent hillbilly motherfucker!"
This movie makes Arizona seem like Alabama with that cop and persistent hillbilly motherfucker.
Seeing Gus Fring play such an unhinged character is funny now that he's known for playing one of the most calculating characters in TV history.
Why does Martin Lawrence only notice the gas smell after hours in the car?
"I am not up on all this jive-talkin', homeboy lingo. What's that supposed to mean, 'There's s spider on your head'?"
"It means there's a spider on your motherfuckin' head."
"Yo, that's a big fuckin' spider!"
John C. McGinley wastes two cigarettes in five minutes. As a former smoker, I find that unacceptable.
I love Martin Lawrence's crab walk as he goes to shoot out Fring and McGinley's tire.
Blue! I didn't know he was in this. This must be the first time I've watched this since Old School came out.
"Freeze, sucker-bitch!"
Not all of Lawrence's adlibs work: "You win at what? Climbing stairs? I guess we'll call you the step king."
You can see why Oedekerk starred in his next movie. He devotes a lot of screen time to himself in this as the dancing, lip-syncing security guard.
That hotel bartender has an all time great disgusted look.
I guess Nick needs to find a new flower shop. It would be pretty damn awkward to go back to Gayheart after their almost hookup.
McGinley's celebration is great: have your partner smell money while you yell, "Hookers!"
That ending is like the ending of an SNL skit. It's just random and clear they couldn't think of a good way to wrap things up. Why not bookend the movie and end with another scene of Nick and his wife "divorcing" each other, especially now that she has more material to use against him?
That scene after the credits makes up for it, though. Seeing a letter addressed to "Hillbilly Motherfucker" makes it one of the better end credits scenes.
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