Mo' Money

Last updated
Mo' Money
MoMoney-Poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Peter Macdonald
Written by Damon Wayans
Produced byMichael Rachmil
Starring
Cinematography Don Burgess
Edited byHubert C. de la Bouillerie
Music by Jay Gruska
Distributed by Columbia Pictures
Release date
  • July 24, 1992 (1992-07-24)
Running time
89 minutes
LanguageEnglish
Budget$10 million [1]
Box office$40,227,006 [2]

Mo' Money is a 1992 American comedy-drama film directed by Peter Macdonald, and written by Damon Wayans, who also starred in the film. The film co-stars Stacey Dash, Joe Santos, John Diehl, Harry Lennix, Bernie Mac (in his film debut), and Marlon Wayans. The film was released in the United States on July 24, 1992. [3]

Contents

Plot

Ted Forrest (Richard E. Butler), who works for the Dynasty Club, is murdered by Keith Heading (John Diehl) and his men on the street. They switch a computer tape in Ted's car before police arrive.

Johnny Stewart (Damon Wayans) is a lifelong con man who performs scams with his younger brother Seymour (Marlon Wayans). When Johnny meets Amber Evans (Stacey Dash), he tries to impress her by obtaining an honest job at the company where she works—Dynasty Club, a credit card firm.

He becomes a mailroom clerk. Chris Fields (Mark Beltzman) trains Johnny how to do the job. Keith threatens Chris in the men's restroom, terrifying Chris. Johnny realizes that he needs money to woo Amber. He develops a scheme to commit identity theft with the credit card information of deceased cardholders to which he has access due to his mailroom position. He justifies his actions because he knows that he is stealing from only the company and not harming the individual cardholders.

Lieutenant Walsh (Joe Santos), who was once the partner of Johnny's deceased father, asks Chris questions about Keith. Chris is stabbed and killed by Keith's hitman in the subway station. Lt. Walsh investigates Chris's murder and finds credit card receipts on him. Keith promotes Johnny from mailroom clerk to supervisor to replace Chris.

With Seymour's help, Johnny charges large amounts of money to the cards with the intention of impressing Amber. Keith is head of security at Dynasty Club, and he also runs a virtual stolen credit card operation. He records Johnny stealing a returned credit card and pressures him to join the credit card criminal enterprise.

Seymour takes a stolen credit card and attempts to buy a four-fingered ring. However, a security alarm blares, indicating the stolen card. Seymour tries to escape but is caught by mall security and questioned by police.

The police authorize a sting operation on Seymour to record Keith's conversation and to capture him. Lt. Walsh becomes furious about the operation. Keith's hitman tries to kill Johnny for blackmail until he shoots Walsh in the arm. Keith kidnaps Seymour, and Johnny goes after him until he escapes. Keith tries to kill Johnny by shooting him in the shoulder. A fight ensues between them until Johnny kills him by hanging him. Seymour and Amber visit Johnny lying in the hospital bed injured and decide to settle down.

Cast

Production

The movie was filmed in Chicago, Illinois in 64 days from July 16 to September 18, 1991. The premise is loosely based on a job Damon Wayans had, in the early-1980s after dropping out of high school, working in the mailroom at a credit card company (he was arrested for stealing preapproved credit cards but got off with probation). [4]

Reception

The film had a mostly negative reception. Michael Wilmington of the Los Angeles Times recalled that "there are amusing things in 'Mo’ Money'—the chemistry of the Wayans team, the paterfamilias routine of Joe Santos as a good cop, the piquant sexiness of Stacey Dash—but they get steamrollered by all the high-tech crash-bang movie machismo." [5] Hal Hinson wrote in The Washington Post that Wayans, "the 'In Living Color' star, who wrote and executive-produced this new picture, has a handful of these sublimely blank moments in 'Mo' Money,' but not nearly enough to anesthetize us to the film's painful deficiencies." [6] The New York Times' Janet Maslin wrote that "the film would have been helped by more directorial spark than is supplied by Peter MacDonald, who is effectively stumped by the screenplay's split personality. Some of the material is played as comedy [...] but a lot of the film hinges on some intrigue involving a corporate swindle, and neither the scheme nor the villains are compelling." [7] The film received a more favorable review from Variety , which stated that the "loosely structured film has trouble meshing its very funny gag scenes with rough action footage, but it should earn mucho change from escapist fans." [8] It holds a 16% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 25 reviews, with an average rating of 4.2/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Mo' Money only comes with mo' problems in this comedically bankrupt outing from the Wayans brothers." [9]

Box office

The film debuted at No. 1 at the box office in the United States, [10] grossing $12,385,415 during its opening weekend. It ultimately finished with $40,227,006 at the North American box office. The film was released in the United Kingdom on December 18, 1992, and opened on #5. [11]

Home media

DVD was released in Region 1 in the United States on January 1, 2002, and also Region 2 in the United Kingdom on 17 June 2002, it was distributed by Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment.

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Celtic Pride</i> 1996 film directed by Tom DeCerchio

Celtic Pride is a 1996 American sports comedy film written by Judd Apatow and Colin Quinn, and directed by Tom DeCerchio. It stars Daniel Stern and Dan Aykroyd as Mike O'Hara and Jimmy Flaherty, two passionate Boston Celtics fans, and Damon Wayans as Lewis Scott, the Utah Jazz's All-Star shooting guard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Damon Wayans</span> American comedian, actor, producer and writer

Damon Kyle Wayans Sr. is an American stand-up comedian, actor, producer, and writer. He performed as a comedian and actor throughout the 1980s, including a year-long stint on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live. He later became a writer and performer on Fox's sketch comedy show In Living Color (1990–1992), on his animated series Waynehead (1996–1997) and on his TV series Damon (1998). Since then, he has starred in a number of films and television shows, some of which he has co-produced or co-written, including Mo Money, The Last Boy Scout, Major Payne, Bulletproof, and the sitcom My Wife and Kids. From 2016 to 2019, he starred as Roger Murtaugh in the Fox television series Lethal Weapon. He is a member of the Wayans family of entertainers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marlon Wayans</span> American actor, writer and producer

Marlon Lamont Wayans is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. He is best known for his work with his brother Shawn Wayans on The WB sitcom The Wayans Bros. (1995–1999) and the comedy films Don't Be a Menace (1996), Scary Movie (2000), Scary Movie 2 (2001), White Chicks (2004), Little Man (2006), and Dance Flick (2009).

<i>White Chicks</i> 2004 film by Keenen Ivory Wayans

White Chicks is a 2004 American buddy cop crime comedy film directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans from a screenplay co-written by Wayans, Xavier Cook, Andy McElfresh, Michael Anthony Snowden, with additional contributions by and starring Marlon Wayans and Shawn Wayans. It also stars Jaime King, Frankie Faison, Lochlyn Munro, and John Heard. In the film, two black male FBI agents go undercover as white women by using whiteface to protect two hotel heiresses from a kidnapping plot targeting socialites.

<i>Bulletproof</i> (1996 film) 1996 American film

Bulletproof is a 1996 American buddy cop action comedy film directed by Ernest Dickerson and starring Damon Wayans, Adam Sandler, James Farentino and James Caan.

<i>Im Gonna Git You Sucka</i> 1988 film by Keenen Ivory Wayans

I'm Gonna Git You Sucka is a 1988 American blaxploitation parody film written, directed by and starring Keenen Ivory Wayans in his directorial debut. Featured in the film are several noteworthy African-American actors who were part of the genre of blaxploitation: Jim Brown, Bernie Casey, Antonio Fargas and Isaac Hayes. It co-stars John Vernon, Kadeem Hardison, Ja'net Dubois, John Witherspoon, Damon Wayans, Clarence Williams III and Chris Rock, and acts as the film debuts of comedian Robin Harris and brothers Shawn and Marlon Wayans.

<i>State Property 2</i> 2005 film directed by Damon Dash

State Property 2 is a 2005 American crime film directed by Damon Dash and produced and distributed by Lionsgate Entertainment. A sequel to 2002's State Property, the film stars rap artists and other musicians such as Cam'ron, The Diplomats, Beanie Sigel, N.O.R.E., Kanye West, Mariah Carey and others. Championship boxers Bernard Hopkins and Winky Wright appear in cameo roles. Dash directed the film and co-created its story with Adam Moreno, who wrote the screenplay. The film marks the final appearance of Ol' Dirty Bastard and the only film appearance of 'Fox' from M.O.P., who died in 2024.

<i>Little Man</i> (2006 film) 2006 American film

Little Man is a 2006 American comedy film directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans, who co-wrote and co-produced it with Marlon and Shawn Wayans, who both also star in lead roles. The film co-stars Kerry Washington, John Witherspoon, Tracy Morgan, Lochlyn Munro, Chazz Palminteri and Molly Shannon. It follows a very short jewel thief who hides the proceeds of his latest robbery, then pretends to be a very large baby in order to retrieve it.

<i>Waynehead</i> Canadian-American animated television series

Waynehead is an animated television series created by actor/comedian Damon Wayans and ran from 1996 to 1997 on Kids' WB, and on YTV from 1996 to 1998. It was a co-production of Warner Bros. Television Animation and Nelvana, with overseas animation by Hanho Heung-Up Co., Ltd., and Philippine Animation Studio, Inc., while the opening sequence was animated by TMS-Kyokuchi Corporation in Japan.

Craig Mikel Wayans is an American writer, television producer and actor. He is the nephew of Keenen Ivory Wayans, Damon Wayans Sr., Kim Wayans, Shawn Wayans and Marlon Wayans.

Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer are American and Canadian filmmakers. They have primarily worked on parody films, which they began writing and directing during the mid-2000s. Friedberg and Seltzer's first five films between 2006 and 2010 received wide theatrical releases to mostly commercial success, but universally negative reviews; their films Epic Movie (2007), Meet the Spartans and Disaster Movie are considered among the worst ever made. Following Vampires Suck (2010), their subsequent releases in the 2010s garnered less attention, largely due to their limited theatrical distribution.

<i>Paper Soldiers</i> 2002 film directed by Damon Dash & David Daniel

Paper Soldiers is a 2002 American urban crime comedy film. This hip-hop comedy from Roc-A-Fella's film division stars Kevin Hart in his film debut, Beanie Sigel, and Stacey Dash. Rapper Jay-Z appears in a cameo role. Hart plays the character Shawn, a rookie thief, who is part of a crew of thieves, doing small-time jobs like house breaking.

The Wayans family is an American show-business family. Family members include Keenen Ivory Wayans, Shawn Wayans, Marlon Wayans, Damon Wayans Sr., Kim Wayans, Damon Wayans Jr., Damien Dante Wayans, and Chaunté Wayans. Works created by Wayans family members include the Scary Movie film series, The Wayans Bros., In Living Color, Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood, White Chicks, My Wife and Kids, and Little Man.

<i>Dance Flick</i> 2009 American film

Dance Flick is a 2009 American musical comedy film directed by Damien Dante Wayans in his directorial debut and written by and starring many members of the Wayans family. The film was set for release in the United States on February 6, 2009, and changed to May 22, 2009.

<i>Fifty Shades of Black</i> 2016 film by Michael Tiddes

Fifty Shades of Black is a 2016 American slapstick romantic comedy film directed by Michael Tiddes and starring Marlon Wayans, who also serves as co-writer and co-producer. The film is a parody to the 2015 erotic romantic drama film Fifty Shades of Grey, the film co-stars Kali Hawk, Affion Crockett, Jane Seymour, Andrew Bachelor, Florence Henderson, Jenny Zigrino, Fred Willard and Mike Epps.

Me and Will is a 1999 road drama film written, starring and directed by Melissa Behr and Sherrie Rose. Additional casting includes Patrick Dempsey, Seymour Cassel, Grace Zabriskie, M. Emmet Walsh, Billy Wirth, Johnny Whitworth, John Enos III, and Julie McCullough.

Lethal Weapon is an American buddy cop action comedy-drama television series developed by Matt Miller and based on the Lethal Weapon film franchise created by Shane Black. The series served as a reboot, which ran for three seasons on Fox, from September 21, 2016 to February 26, 2019.

<i>Naked</i> (2017 film) 2017 American film

Naked is a 2017 American comedy film directed by Michael Tiddes and written by Rick Alvarez, Cory Koller and Marlon Wayans. It is a remake of the 2000 Swedish film Naken. The film stars Marlon Wayans, Regina Hall, Jonathan Todd Jackson, Scott Foley, Loretta Devine, Brian McKnight and Dennis Haysbert. The film was released on Netflix on August 11, 2017.

<i>Sextuplets</i> (film) 2019 American film

Sextuplets is a 2019 American comedy film directed by Michael Tiddes from a screenplay by Mike Glock, Rick Alvarez and Marlon Wayans. It stars Marlon Wayans and Bresha Webb, and follows a man who sets out to find his long-lost siblings after discovering he is one of sextuplets his mother had.

<i>Honor Up</i> 2018 American film

Honor Up is a 2018 action film directed and co-written by Damon Dash and executive produced by Kanye West. Starring Dash, Cam'ron, Daniel Jenkins, Murda Mook, Nicholas Turturro and Stacey Dash, the film was released on February 16, 2018 to generally negative reviews.

References

  1. ↑ "A look inside Hollywood and the movies. : SUPER MEN : 'Blankman,' Meet 'Meteor Man'". Los Angeles Times. 1993-05-02. Retrieved 2020-12-29.
  2. ↑ "Mo' Money (1992)". Box Office Mojo. 1992-09-08. Retrieved 2011-10-29.
  3. ↑ "Mo Money(1992)". Yahoo movies. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
  4. ↑ Peisner, David (February 6, 2018). Homey Don't Play That!: The Story of In Living Color and the Black Comedy Revolution. New York City, New York: Simon and Schuster. p. 27. ISBN   9781501143366.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  5. ↑ Wilmington, Michael (1992-07-27). "MOVIE REVIEW : 'Mo' Money' Overdoses on Blood, Guts". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 2012-05-29.
  6. ↑ "'Mo' Money' (R)". Washington Post . 1992-07-25. Retrieved 2012-05-29.
  7. ↑ Maslin, Janet (1992-07-25). "Review/Film; A Scruffy Street Hustler In the Corporate World". The New York Times . Retrieved 2012-05-29.
  8. ↑ "'Mo' Money'". Variety . Retrieved 2012-05-29.
  9. ↑ "Mo' Money - Rotten Tomatoes". Rotten Tomatoes .
  10. ↑ Fox, David J. (1992-07-28). "'Mo' Money' Takes In Most Money". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 2012-05-29.
  11. ↑ "UK Weekend Box Office 18th December 1992 - 20th December 1992". www.25thframe.co.uk. Retrieved 12 December 2018.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.