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tear it down as well. Bolt incites Fumes and the other slum residents to stage a mock battle during the televised ceremony of
Crasswell demolishing the slum area. Realising that he will be ousted, Crasswell attempts to stop Bolt with a hydraulic excavator. When Bolt's grapple has plucked Crasswell and has him hanging by his jacket, the scene is freeze-framed into a news report saying that Crasswell, in a court case, was forced to admit he made a bet with Bolt, then reneged on the terms.
339:. During a scuffle with two muggers (including a chase through a Chinese kitchen/restaurant), Bolt is pushed out of bounds, which activates his anklet. To prevent the "30-second forfeiture", Bolt rushes back in, which impresses Molly with his supposed bravery, as it looks like he is tackling the muggers. The muggers are eventually defeated via a pot of boiling stock being poured over them from a height, forcing them to retreat their assault on Bolt.
343:
realizes that Bolt is honoring the bet fair and square, Crasswell bribes Bolt's lawyers into fabricating the story that Bolt had lost his mind and has his property seized. Bolt finds this out first hand as, upon completing the bet, he forces his way into a party which is being held by
Crasswell at Bolt's home and his lawyers feign ignorance.
562:"a warmhearted new comedy", opining that while Brooks did an exemplary job of finding humor in the dismal subject matter, the film is much less comedy-focused than most of his films, taking a sensitive and poignant approach to its characters. He also highly praised Brooks' acting in the film, and concluded, "There is a certain tension in
581:, who remarked that Brooks "has a much surer sense of how to lampoon such a figure than of how to turn him into anyone nice." She regarded the subject matter as too depressing for most of the humor to work, and also criticized the uncharacteristically polite nature of Brooks' jokes in the film. However, she praised the performances of
572:, in contrast, was unimpressed with the film's message, arguing that it is implausible that a man like Goddard Bolt would not succeed at life on the streets, and that the only places where the film succeeds are in its humorous moments rather than its attempts to convey a message. Summing up "The problem with
311:. Bolt makes a bet with his biggest rival, Vance Crasswell, who also has an interest in the property. Crasswell challenges Bolt to survive on the streets as if he were homeless for 30 days. Should Bolt lose, Crasswell owns the property, but should Bolt win, Crasswell will sell it for practically nothing.
350:
Bolt, now in control of the area, has plans to renovate it into the "Bolt Center", which will give the slum residents employment, renovate the tenements into livable homes, and give the children a private school financed entirely out of pocket by
Goddard Bolt. The news report ends by saying that Bolt
346:
Forced to live on the streets for good and remanded to a free clinic by mistake, a drugged Bolt murmurs that "life stinks". Molly implores him to remember the small things, such as the two of them waltzing, that make life livable. Crasswell, meanwhile, has his own plans for the slum area, planning to
342:
Bolt learns a series of important life lessons during his "adventure", namely that life is not about accomplishments or material success, but rather the integrity of the human spirit. However, Bolt is unaware that the unscrupulous
Crasswell has no intention of honoring their bet. When Crasswell
318:
that will activate if he leaves the boundaries, forfeiting the bet if he exceeds 30 seconds out of bounds; and at no time can he reveal to any of the slum area residents that he is
Goddard Bolt. To add to the look, Bolt has his mustache shaved off, then Crasswell confiscates his
323:
and rips his jacket chest pocket. Bolt is taken to the slums, thrown out of the limo and begins the bet. Unbeknown to Bolt, Crasswell schemes to make
Goddard's stay on the streets as bad as possible. Bolt, homeless, hungry and filthy, is befriended by
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is that it's got its heart in the right place but not a whole lot else," she gave it two out of five stars. She added that it was a mistake for Brooks to attempt a more serious film, an opinion shared by
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was initially considered for Lesley Ann Warren's role; however, Brooks was uncertain whether he could convincingly play her love interest. Sailor's funeral was inspired by an incident that happened when
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between the bull-headed optimism of the Brooks character, and the hopeless reality of the streets, and that’s what the movie is about." Marjorie
Baumgarten of
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has married Molly, and the press are expecting an extravagant CEO-type event, only to then be shown
Goddard and Molly taking their wedding vows in a simple
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as the auteur's worst." Citing the failed efforts at social satire and absence of Mel Brooks' usual collection of leads, he gave it one-and-a-half stars.
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Goddard Bolt is the callous CEO of Bolt
Enterprises. Bolt shows little regard for other people's needs, or for the environment. He has his eye on the
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During the bet, he meets and eventually becomes attracted to Molly, a homeless woman who used to be a dancer on
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552:, assigned the film a score of 54 out of 100, based on 19 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews..
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661:
815:"The Crimson Cult, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., My Beautiful Laundrette Among New Home Entertainment Titles"
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inhabitants like Sailor and Fumes and given the nickname "Pepto" after falling asleep in a crate with a
295:. The film was both a critical and a box-office flop, but has since taken a cult following among fans.
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commented, "Mel Brooks strikes out with this sizable flop that's perhaps surpassed only by 1995's
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logo on its side, having used the crate to urinate on mere moments before Sailor arrives.
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There are three conditions: Bolt will be completely penniless; he must wear an
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544:, 25% of 20 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 4.3/10.
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625:, Brooks also wrote that he considered the movie his best work as an actor.
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279:(apart from a dance sequence midway through the film). It co-stars
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million in the United States and Canada, against a budget of $ 13
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1039:
621:, as one of the films he's most proud of. In his 2021 memoir
690:"Filmmaker Retrospective: The Parody Cinema of Mel Brooks"
592:
In a review of the 2015 Blu-Ray release, Matt
Brunson of
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in the slum area, then driving off in a limousine with a
271:. It is one of the few Mel Brooks comedies that is not a
507:, prior to its theatrical release on July 26, 1991.
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623:All About Me!: My Remarkable Life in Show Business
716:"Mel Brooks didn't want to kiss Whoopi Goldberg"
503:The film was screened out of competition at the
605:Despite the film's failure, Brooks later cited
267:co-written, produced, directed by and starring
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976:"Mel Brooks, from Riches to Rags to Humility"
8:
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515:The 2015 Blu-Ray release includes a Brooks
291:. The original music score was composed by
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275:, nor at any time does the film break the
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942:Baumgarten, Marjorie (August 2, 1991).
653:
1459:Films with screenplays by Rudy De Luca
523:feature about the making of the film.
766:
764:
7:
1449:Films with screenplays by Mel Brooks
1479:English-language comedy-drama films
1387:To Be or Not to Be (The Hitler Rap)
495:was scattering his father's ashes.
307:of Los Angeles, with the intent of
456:Frank Roman as Spanish Interpreter
14:
1211:Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank
813:Brunson, Matt (August 5, 2015).
688:Anderson, Ryan (June 14, 2015).
1299:Spaceballs: The Animated Series
1:
1307:History of the World, Part II
459:Christopher Birt as Paramedic
1469:1990s English-language films
1429:Films produced by Mel Brooks
1424:Films directed by Mel Brooks
1152:History of the World, Part I
724:. Diligent Media Corporation
1454:Films scored by John Morris
1419:American comedy-drama films
1184:Dracula: Dead and Loving It
599:Dracula: Dead and Loving It
1495:
1464:Films about businesspeople
819:Creative Loafing Charlotte
714:IANS (November 24, 2007).
594:Creative Loafing Charlotte
477:as the voice of the Priest
18:
1439:Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films
1176:Robin Hood: Men in Tights
1077:
721:Daily News & Analysis
505:1991 Cannes Film Festival
423:Matthew Faison as Stevens
40:Theatrical release poster
33:
1434:Films about homelessness
1414:1991 comedy-drama films
1283:When Things Were Rotten
471:as Crasswell's Attorney
200:July 26, 1991
16:1991 film by Mel Brooks
1082:Awards and nominations
453:as Reverend at Wedding
1369:The 2000 Year Old Man
1256:84 Charing Cross Road
414:as Pops (eleven's up)
1474:1990s American films
949:The Austin Chronicle
748:Cannes Film Festival
662:"Life Stinks (1991)"
569:The Austin Chronicle
1223:Films produced only
1087:On screen and stage
923:. Ebert Digital LLC
263:is a 1991 American
180:Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
1350:Young Frankenstein
1251:(1986; uncredited)
1240:To Be or Not to Be
1235:(1980; uncredited)
1195:Films written only
1128:Young Frankenstein
982:The New York Times
447:as Flophouse Owner
384:as Vance Crasswell
19:For the song, see
1444:Brooksfilms films
1396:
1395:
1267:TV series created
1112:The Twelve Chairs
973:(July 26, 1991).
915:(July 26, 1991).
618:The Twelve Chairs
583:Lesley Ann Warren
538:review aggregator
532:Critical response
521:short documentary
376:Lesley Ann Warren
316:electronic anklet
281:Lesley Ann Warren
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104:Lesley Ann Warren
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550:weighted average
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986:. Retrieved
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259:
258:
257:
244:$ 13 million
216:Running time
193:Release date
79:Rudy De Luca
62:Rudy De Luca
1302:(2008–2009)
1278:(1965–1970)
1168:Life Stinks
1025:Life Stinks
1008:Life Stinks
881:Life Stinks
842:Life Stinks
774:Life Stinks
634:Life Stinks
607:Life Stinks
574:Life Stinks
564:Life Stinks
560:Life Stinks
556:Roger Ebert
463:Larry Cedar
451:Sammy Shore
427:Billy Barty
293:John Morris
277:fourth wall
265:comedy film
260:Life Stinks
169:Brooksfilms
154:John Morris
86:Produced by
46:Directed by
29:Life Stinks
1409:1991 films
1403:Categories
1160:Spaceballs
1071:Mel Brooks
988:26 October
955:26 October
898:2023-03-28
896:Retrieved
888:Metacritic
859:2023-03-28
824:26 October
791:2023-03-28
753:August 12,
648:References
629:Box office
546:Metacritic
511:Home media
483:Production
420:as Knowles
370:Mel Brooks
269:Mel Brooks
249:Box office
220:92 minutes
204:1991-07-26
161:Production
100:Mel Brooks
89:Mel Brooks
73:Mel Brooks
59:Mel Brooks
50:Mel Brooks
1275:Get Smart
644:million.
527:Reception
396:as Sailor
359:"PEPTO".
138:Edited by
76:Ron Clark
1389:" (1983)
1030:AllMovie
927:July 20,
728:July 19,
699:July 20,
540:website
429:as Willy
408:as Fumes
378:as Molly
337:Broadway
326:skid-row
233:Language
150:Music by
94:Starring
70:Story by
1248:The Fly
558:called
536:On the
499:Release
236:English
225:Country
202: (
163:company
1353:(2007)
1345:(2001)
1337:(1962)
1329:(1957)
1310:(2023)
1294:(1989)
1286:(1975)
1259:(1987)
1243:(1983)
1214:(2022)
1206:(2005)
1187:(1995)
1179:(1993)
1171:(1991)
1163:(1987)
1155:(1981)
1147:(1977)
1139:(1976)
1131:(1974)
1123:(1974)
1115:(1970)
1107:(1967)
1015:
642:
638:
519:and a
353:chapel
321:toupée
273:parody
241:Budget
1379:Other
441:as Yo
1013:IMDb
990:2020
957:2020
929:2018
826:2020
786:IMDb
755:2009
730:2018
701:2018
675:2021
667:BBFC
615:and
585:and
363:Cast
305:slum
299:Plot
287:and
1028:at
1011:at
1405::
979:.
946:.
919:.
891:.
885:.
852:.
846:.
817:.
805:^
784:.
778:.
763:^
746:.
718:.
692:.
664:.
589:.
283:,
1385:"
1063:e
1056:t
1049:v
992:.
959:.
931:.
901:.
883:"
879:"
862:.
844:"
840:"
828:.
794:.
776:"
772:"
757:.
732:.
703:.
677:.
206:)
23:.
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