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After reading the user comments on this movie, it appears that the main complaint is that it is not the rollicking laugh-a-minute comedy that fans of the two leads expected. Once you let that expectation go, this is a great movie! It succeeds as a drama with comic tone. There have been some great ones that do this, and we mistakenly classify them as comedies. For example, M*A*S*H, Mr. Roberts, It's a Wonderful Life. These are pictures that provide comic overtones to people struggling to get through a very serious and overwhelming event: war, contemplated suicide, and in the case of Life, life imprisonment.

I was surprised at how good Murphy is in this flick.Not one of my favorites, he convinces as he ages and grows under the burden his character carries, that of an entire life stolen from him. And he survives with a certain dignity. Lawrence is almost as good, but he does labor a bit with the dramatic parts, seeming a bit uncomfortable shedding his comic bent. Note that when these characters are shown as old men, Murphy actually becomes an old man, Lawrence is still a young man in oldster's make-up.

Let's not overlook an interesting small role expertly understated by Ned Beatty, and the charm of Bokeem Woodbine as Can't Get Right. Life is well-mounted and the sets are as convincing as any I've seen. Comedies are rarely as dirty and sweaty as this movie.

I thoroughly enjoyed this picture, realizing early on that it was a very serious movie wrongly hyped as a comedy.

Looking forward to my next viewing of this. Martin Lawrence once again proves that given a co-star to work off he can deliver, and here he does as he gets Eddie Murphy on prime form to work with. It's a very funny and bittersweet picture, a tale of friendship under duress. A great supporting cast fills out the other convict characters. 8/10

If you're not a fan of Eddie Murphy's humor, then skip this one.

The movie begins in modern times, 1997, with the main characters' funerals. The movie then flashes back to 1932 to begin telling their story, and continues as they age in prison in Mississippi.

They were "petty criminals" but were sentenced to life in prison for a murder they did not commit. However, being black in 1930s Mississippi did them no favors. The story that unfolds is irreverent and funny and has enough twists along the way to keep things very interesting.

I can't understand why the average rating of this movie is below "6". I give it "8" of "10" for its overall entertainment value, plus a few "life's little lessons" thrown in. I think it is one of Eddie Murphy's best movies.

OCT 2020 edit: I just watched it again after 20 years, this time on DVD. While most of it was somewhat familiar I had forgotten the last scene in Yankee Stadium.

Life is a good comedy about 2 men (Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence) who are wrongfully accused of a crime in Mississippi and are sentenced to life in prison. Murphy and Lawrence make one of the best on-screen duo's of the year by acting like they don't like each other, but in reality they need each other to survive. Great laughs and amazing makeup (supplied by Oscar Winner and Oscar nominee for this movie, Rick Baker) make this a must-see for Murphy 1and Lawrence fans, or for anyone looking for a good chuckle. A

Excellent, simply brilliant.

One of the most funniest films I have seen.

I have seen this so many times and I don't understand why it has only scored a 6/10!

I always think that story lines that cover a large chunk of the characters' lives are always very interesting as the audience gets to see how they evolve and change with age. All of the characters pull this off - over the years we see Ray (Eddie Murphy) change from a young confident individual who never gives up hope to a tired old grouchy man who is hard of hearing; but its never sad. Even when the characters are riddled with old age the humour is still fantastic.