Amos & Andrew (1993)

Comedy of errors as Amos Odell, a career criminal, tries to save a corrupt Police Chief's job by breaking into Andrew Sterling's house and taking him hostage, and then give up.
Genre: Feature Film-Comedy
Rating: PG13
Release Date: 2-NOV-2004
Media Type: DVD Product Description

pretty dull comedy

This isn't a BAD movie, but it's not that great either. The whole situation with Samuel Jackson being mistaken for a thief while moving into his house due to the prejudices of the community starts out the film with some decent humor, but once the addition of real crook Nicolas Cage comes in to do cleanup for the chief the story just feels sloppy. Cage and Jackson are A+ as always, really good acting and tremendous fun watching them interact, but it's just not that well written. It could have been much better, but as it is, it is merely okay, having been saved by the great tension and chemistry between Jackson and Cage. September 2, 2008

Funny

I love this movie. I have been looking for it forever. I thought it was great of the director to cast two great character actors for this film. I know in most of their movies they are now considered leading men but they started out as great character actors. I also loved Giancarlo Esposito role in this film. His take on Al Sharpton is hilarious. January 28, 2008

Another Great Comedy that Almost Nobody Saw

I don't know how it is that some very good movies get sidetracked when they are first released. This is one of them and it is well worth watching and owning, in my opinion. Of course, as a previous reviewer noted, it is NOT a re-do of the famous radio show and if you expect it to be, you will be very confused by it. No, this comedy is very much its own black-and-white story and a hilarious commentary on the prejudices and preconceived notions that are to be found even among the most supposedly enlightened of us. The whole comedy stems from erroneous assumptions made about a black man seen in an empty house in a posh NY community at night (he is, of course, the new owner). Both Samuel L. Jackson and Nicholas Cage (cast as a down-at-heels drifter pressed into service by the local sheriff) play their parts to perfection and Dabney Coleman and the cast of supporting characters are also excellent in their various roles as bumbling law dogs, neighbors, reporters, etc. In sum, I found this underrated film to be not only extremely funny but a wise and wry social commentary as well. May 30, 2005

NOT SO POLITICALLY CORRECT

AMOS AND ANDREW certainly doesn't do much to promote a politically correct stance on racism, but for a 1993 comedy, it does have its moments and has some interesting social commentary to make. Samuel L. Jackson plays Andrew Sterling, a wealthy black entrepreneur, who recently had his picture on the cover of Fortune magazine. He buys a summer house at a snooty island community, but no one knows it. While he's hooking up his stereo on his first night in the house, snooping neighbors assume because he's black, he must be a burglar! They contact the local sheriff and he takes a small Army to the house and a mishap by a bumbling deputy triggers an attack on Jackson. Once he finds out his mistake, the politically motivated sheriff (he's running for County Commissioner) decides he needs to clean up his act and does so by making a deal with a second rate criminal (Nicolas Cage) to pretend to be the burglar. Of course, things don't go as planned and there's where we get the rest of this broadly humorous film.
Jackson and Cage do well in their roles, Cage assuaging a restrained swagger and Jackson oozing his indignity as a black citizen in a white world. Dabney Coleman as the sheriff is his typically nasty and manipulative self; Margaret Colin and Michael Lerner are very funny as the couple who call the police; Brad Dourif is hilarious as the inept deputy, and Bob Balaban as a hostage negotiator is very funny too.
The movie is full of stereotypical characters, including Giancarlo Esposito as some kind of minister, and hopefully we have evolved from this racist kind of behavior. But AMOS AND ANDREW is entertaining and worth a look. May 11, 2005

A Very Entertaining Movie!!!!

I first viewed this movie when it first came out and loved it.I had forgotten all about it untill 2 weeks ago, when while looking on amazon, saw its listing. I ordered it straight away, and would have to say that this is a very entertaining movie. It has a very original story line, and is realy funny. This movie is a must see, rent or buy, you cant go wrong. April 17, 2004

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