TRADING PLACES

(July 1983, U.S.)

By 1983, 48 HRS. may have been Eddie Murphy’s only previous film under his belt, but his years on SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE and his HBO comedy special DELIRIOUS solidified him as a major star. Beyond the promo spots on TV, I didn’t know what his new movie TRADING PLACES was about when I was a teenager, and I didn’t care. It was Eddie Murphy, for crying out loud, and I needed no other reason to get my butt into the theater as soon as possible to enjoy more of wild and vulgar antics.

This was, I think, the first time I’d seen the city of Philadelphia on screen since three ROCKY movies. There were the same landmarks to look at like the Liberty Bell and the famous museum steps that made Rocky Balboa so famous. This time, the camera also focuses on sections of the city that define the wealthy and successful, including Dan Aykroyd’s character of Louis Winthorpe III as a spoiled rotten and prissy little man who couldn’t even get dressed in the morning without the help of his faithful butler and servant, Coleman (played by Denholm Elliot). I'm actually surprised to see that Louis has a job requiring him to show up to work every morning. I suppose that was part of what makes him a funny guy. When Eddie Murphy finally arrives on the scene, he's just as insane as he ever, pretending to be a blind man with no legs. There isn’t just some good physical comedy happening here, but also the spontaneous dialogue spitting out of Eddie’s mouth when he's busted by the police. Listening to him rant and rave about how happy he is to have his sight and the use of his legs back is laughter no one can resist. Before we know what's happening, Winthorpe’s encounter with Eddie’s character Billy Ray Valentine results in Winthorpe being arrested for a theft he didn’t commit, and Billy Ray getting sucked into the rich life once belonging to Winthorpe. The two of them are now unwillingly part of a one dollar bet and experiment made between the two wealthy Duke Brothers to see what will happen if Winthorpe and Valentine’s lives are switched, and what will happen to each of them.

As we can easily expect, a street hustler like Valentine takes to his wild new life of money very quickly and easily. He also becomes a better and more honest human being as time goes on. Winthorpe, on the other hand, becomes more of the criminal type who’ll stop at nothing to prove himself innocent against everything that's happened to him. He also gets help from Jamie Lee Curtis, now playing a hooker named Ophelia. Turns out she can be a funny woman, as well as the "queen of scream" in two HALLOWEEN movies. We also get to see her topless for just a brief moment (no complaint about that)...

TRADING PLACES is one of the earliest comedies in which I learned about the art of cliché in the movies. After watching it for some time, it becomes pretty obvious how things will turn out. It's not surprising when Dan and Eddie realize what's happening to them and decided to team up to get even with the Duke Brothers. It's not surprising to see that their plan to get rich while putting the Duke’s in the poor house is an easy and welcomed success. It's not surprising to see that Dan and Jamie end up together on a tropical island in the end after he was previously dumped by his fiancée Penelope, who was all-too-ready to disbelieve his innocence and leave him forever (perhaps we also learn about the realities of human loyalty from this movie, as well). I'd say the real surprise of this movie comes five years later with another John Landis/Eddie Murphy comedy, COMING TO AMERICA, when we're reunited with the Duke Brothers, still living on the streets in poverty.

This was the second Dan Aykroyd film released after he lost his best friend John Belushi in March 1982 (the first was a dud called DOCTOR DETROIT). His return is refreshing in a way because it displays his genuine joy toward comedy that one would expect from Aykroyd from his years on SNL, as well as his screen work. The interplay between himself and Eddie Murphy not only serves up the good laughs, but also makes for entertaining socio-economic social satire with a good heart, as well, despite any signs of character stereotype it displays (successful comedy has no rules, or at least it shouldn’t have any rules). The skills of these two young actors is both quirky and odd, defining each of their personalities and telling us who they truly are. It’s because of who they truly are as opposites that makes them so funny, I think. This is a film that easily echoes an old black and white classic like Preston Sturges’ 1941 film THE LADY EVE, in which opposing identities also conflict with each other, resulting in comic outcomes, if not genius.

And hey, I'm sure I'm not the only one who still likes to do this every New Year's Eve...

Favorite line or dialogue:

Billy Ray Valentine: "Merry New Year!"
Clarence Beeks: "That's "happy." In this country we say "Happy New Year."
Billy Ray: "Oh, ho, ho, thank you for correcting my English which stinks!"