Search - Where the Money Is (Ws) on DVD

Newman Charm Carries Standard 'Heist' Flick...

Benjamin J Burgraff | Las Vegas | 12/14/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I've been a Paul Newman fan all my life (in fact, I'm only two years older than his film debut, in 'The Silver Chalice'), so whenever he appears onscreen, it is a cause of celebration for me...at least until I see whether or not the film is any good!'Where the Money Is' gets a mixed review from me; as a character study, it's terrific, with Newman combining the cranky, elderly gruffness that has become a staple of his recent films, with that charming, still boyish smile that for a moment lifts the years, and harkens back to 'Butch Cassidy' and 'Cool Hand Luke'. Add to this a wonderful performance by Linda Fiorentino, as a small-town girl who deserved a chance to grow, but ended up tied into a mundane life with a dull husband. She captures a quiet desperation and desire to 'live' that most of us can identify with, and also conveys a sexiness and passion that no one else in town even comes CLOSE to!Where the movie lets me down is in the routine plot. One would think that a 'master' criminal like Newman would come up with something more creative that an armored car heist, even if he WAS saddled with novice crooks Fiorentino and Mulroney (who, as the husband, plays another of the 'not very bright' characters that have become his trademark). The planning and execution of the heist and subsequent robberies is so 'by-the-numbers' and routine that it lacks any real suspense (even the 'glitches' are predictable!).What it all comes down to is this; if you are a Newman fan (like me), and enjoy watching a screen legend show a new generation of actors and audiences what defines a 'star', 'Where the Money Is' certainly deserves a spot in your film library! If, however, you are looking for a great 'heist' movie, pick up 'Entrapment', 'The Thomas Crown Affair', or 'The Getaway', instead!"

Newman shines

flickjunkie | 12/21/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Paul Newman shines in this implausible, but highly watchable caper flick about three unlikely armored car robbers. It is hard to believe that Newman is 75. He is fitter and more energetic than most men who are fifteen years his junior. He single-handedly elevates this film from mediocrity.The story is nothing unique. Henry (Newman) is a bank robber who is delivered to a nursing home after a debilitating stroke. His nurse (Linda Fiorentino) suspects he is not the vegetable he appears to be. After she gets him to admit his ruse, she exhorts him to knock off an armored truck with her.Director Marek Kanievska and writer Max Frye leave numerous gaps in the story. We never discover what tips off Carol that Henry is faking. They didn't do enough character development of Carol and Wayne (Dermot Mulroney) to make it believable that they would want to become criminals, no less hatch the scheme. The idea that Carol was pretending to be the dispatcher for the armored car company from a cell phone in the truck is a flimsy concoction. Even with digital technology, most cell phones in moving vehicles sound like cell phones, and you can hear road noises and the engine running.Still, despite a lackluster script, the film is enjoyable because of Paul Newman. Newman gives a fantastic rendition of a stroke victim, and his hardened and cantankerous portrayal was marvelous. Linda Fiorentino plays the scheming sex-kitten nurse in one of her better performances. The screen chemistry between Fiorentino and Newman is excellent with undercurrents of sexual desire constantly flaring up between them. Dermot Mulroney is relegated to a role that was essentially a fifth wheel and is adequate as Carol's loser of a husband.I rated this film a 7/10. It is good entertainment and an opportunity to see a master at work. Newman hasn't lost a beat in a movie career that spans almost a half a century. It is worth seeing for him alone."

Kansas needs to lighten up.

flickjunkie | 07/22/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This movie is a hoot and of course, Paul Newman, is superb. You watch a movie for entertainment. Don't take everything so seriously!"

Good acting in a fluff plot

elvistcob@lvcm.com | Las Vegas, NV | 06/18/2002

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I like a fun caper movie when all the right elements that go with it are in place. This movie has a plot that flat out wouldn't work, which would be ok in a movie like "Sugar and Spice", where we just care about how the cheerleaders look. But this one is trying to be more serious, and with it should come grittier crime scenarios. The serious part is to show Paul Newman faking paralysis in order to get to a rest home instead of prison as a means of making an escape. While very unlikely in itself, he plays it seriously. Also played seriously is the attempt by Linda Fiorentino to unmask the charade. The chemistry between the two actors is excellent, both here, and throughout the entire movie, and that's what gets it three stars. Paul Newman shows he's still very much worth seeing, and I hope they give him a few more higher quality films before he packs it in. But while I liked the interraction between the two main characters, unfortunately everything else is, well, fluff. Dermot Mulroney has a completely thankless role as the husband who feels he's losing his wife to the much older Newman. Since he isn't really a bad person, I don't like that the movie makes him do something to make us dislike him by the end. But the part I disliked the most was the crime caper they go on. Newman once again shows marvelous talent as an actor as they go on it, but it's the heist they do that doesn't convinvce me for a minute that it would work. Nor does the ending when confronted by the police, nor does the very final few minutes. With the recent quality filming of Elmore Leonard novels, the bar has risen in the way movies need to portray the criminal world. Linda Fiorentino has proven she can do great work, and Paul Newman is a national treasure. Let's give him the respect he deserves with a few more quality roles."