What's the Worst That Could Happen?

When billionaire Danny DeVito catches burglar Martin Lawrence robbing his house, he holds him at gunpoint until the police arrive, then takes Lawrence's ring. Because it was a gift from his girlfriend, Carmen Ejogo, Lawrence wants to get it back.... and he has a large network of skilled but inept criminals to call on for help: once, that is, they stop laughing at him.

It's based on Donald Westlake's Dortmunder novel of the same name, and like most movie versions of Westlake's sad-sack crime comedies, some peculiar choices were made. The Westlake characters are all shlubs, with Dortmunder's brilliant plans being confounded by their bad luck and mistakes. Lawrence is good, and Bernie Mac is outstanding as the fence who bankrolls the operations, but while the comic actors are superb, it lacks the the disorganized doggedness of Westlake. Even so, the story is a good one, Devito plays his role right in the middle of his comfort spot, and even if you know Westlake, it's impossible to figure out what's going to happen next.

Just the name Martin Lawrence kind of makes me laugh, and this movie with Danny DeVito will give you several good belly laughs. Plain and simple, the formula for a good comedy is not all that complex, as this film clearly shows. There's no gross-out humor, or excessive vulgar language needed to make this movie a fun couple of hours. I also genuinely liked John Leguizamo's character throughout the movie. All in all this movie is a barrel of laughs from start to finish.

If the box office rest of summer ends up as good as this movie was, movie fans will be in for a real treat. Martin Lawrence returns to the big screen with his hilarious brand of humor as he teams with Danny DeVito in "What's The Worst That Can Happen?" "What's The Worst That Can Happen?" revolves around a would-be burglar named Kevin Caffrey, played by Lawrence, is caught in the act by the home owner, billionaire Max Fairbanks, played by DeVito. The tables are turned when Fairbanks steals Caffrey's ring given to him by his girlfriend. The rest of the film circles around getting the ring back. From this moment on, I knew I was going to be watching one funny film.

Joining Lawrence and DeVito is John Leguizamo as Kevin's partner in crime, Burger, Carmen Ejogo as Kevin's girlfriend Amber and Bernie Mac as Kevin's uncle. The addition of these actors is evidence that "What's The Worst That Can Happen?" is a sure hit with all ages.

Lawrence wears two hats in "What's The Worst That Can Happen?" as producer and star and he has success in both capacities. Furthermore, he was a true asset as an actor in "What's The Worst That Can Happen?" because he brought a unique brand of humor.

His style is one to be proud of because he truly makes the comedy enjoyable and the humor so funny you'll be laughing so hard it will hurt. I appreciate his comedic ability and acting talent.

DeVito adds credibility to one truly fun comedy. I couldn't have asked for a better actor to portray Max Fairbanks. There is not a lot to say about DeVito because his lengthy and steady body of work speaks for him. With so many great films under his belt, I knew I was going to be watching a true master at work.

In addition to credibility, DeVito has presence and humor in that made me smile from ear to ear and start to finish. He is solid comedic genius that brings a great amount of comedy and presence that will leave everyone smiling.

Leguizamo has a true niche for comedy as he proves in "What's The Worst That Can Happen?" I wasn't sure how to gage Leguizamo because I have only seen one other film with him, so I was surprised to learn he was one of funniest and talented actors in the movie.

The chemistry between Lawrence and Leguizamo was perfect because they seemed to work so well together. Leguizamo was a great compliment to Lawrence and his brand of humor. I enjoyed every minute they shared the screen because I knew I was going to laugh.

Ejogo was a true pleasure to watch because she brought excitement and charisma to the movie. I relished each scene she was in because I got the opportunity to see a true natural at work. Mac was a true surprise because I didn't expect him to turn in a good performance.

The writing in this movie is excellent as it compliments Lawrence's comedy and DeVito's humor. The games set up by the writers were incredible fun to watch since each scene skillfully crafted.

Also, the audience received a bonus when the writer added action and suspense. Though "What's The Worst That Can Happen?" succeeds mostly with comedy, it also entertains with action and suspense.

I knew with scenes like Kevin's taunts to Max over his cell-phone while he was in a senate sub-committee, "What's The Worst That Can Happen?" will entertain every single person who buys a ticket for this movie. I could not ask for anything more from the writers of "What's The Worst That Could Happen" because watching this story play out is a thing of beauty.

One solid guarantee I can make to potential viewers of this movie: "What's The Worst That Could Happen" will leave you laughing until it hurts. Lawrence and DeVito are a lethal comedic team that fills the screen with laughter, suspense and action. "What's The Worst That Can Happen?" is one of the most entertaining films I've seen.

I hope everyone gets the chance to see how great these two talents come together and create one of the funniest movies this year.

This movie was refreshingly funny, as Martin Lawrence and Danny De Vito give great comic performances. De Vito steals Lawrence's ring as the latter is caught burglarizing the former's house, and Lawrence spends the majority of the film trying to get it back.

A funny film all around, and the scene where De Vito is testifying before a senate committee is not to be missed.

*** out of ****

Well, what can I say? It's not the best Martin Lawrence film and its not even one of the top 20 best Danny De Vito films (isn't this little guy one of the biggest comic actors of our time!) but it's a nice comedy, good to rent on video or watch on TV.

Basically the plot is not very imaginative and the movie relies mostly on the actors performances. So I'll concentrate on them in this review. Here it goes:

De Vito is perfect as always. Noone could play the part of the complacent billionaire better than him! He does the best he can do with the material he's given, but his talent could have been used more appropriately if the writers had done a better job...

Martin Lawrence also playes one of his usual parts, quite similar to the part he played in Blue Streak. He does everything expected from him, including getting in disguise more than once and producing some Eddie Murphy-style jokes. But seeing Black Knight and now this, one may ask: isn't he repeating himself too much now? Sure he's funny, but he's also getting annoying to more and more people...

We also have some good-loking actresses, especially the lady playing Lawrence's girlfriend. Their parts are unfortunately too brief to be memorable.

Oh,yes, there's also William Fichtner playing one of the weirdest detectives in the history of cinema! Am I the only one who thinks he was doing a parody of Willem Defoe's character in The Boondock Saints??

As far as the plot, well, it's all about a ring...