I have now done almost 100 posts for in this Blind Spot series and one continuing trend is me not enjoying classic comedies particularly from the 80s. I didn't enjoy Beverly Hills Cop, Troop Beverly Hills, Lethal Weapon, Slap Shot, National Lampoons Vacation, the list goes on. So it was with some hesitation I added Trading Places to my 2023 lineup but there aren't that many Christmas-themed movies I haven't seen so I decided to give it a shot. Now after having seen the film I am glad to say it mostly still works. There are outdated elements but as a piece of social commentary it still feels sharp and incisive.
Trading Places tells the story of two gentlemen, one a rich stock broker and one a small-time criminal, who are entered into a social experiment by 2 richer stock brokers to try and decide the debate of nurture vs nature. Dan Akroyd playing Winthorpe the broker is suddenly stripped of his position, power, money and everything else while Eddie Murphy's Valentine is given all those things. This is of course very upsetting to Winthorpe and he tries to defend himself which only makes him look more crazy to the uppity people he used to call friends.
Valentine on the other hand is suddenly given power and he does quite well with it. He uses his street smarts to read the room and get better deals than the Wall Street types can achieve. There is also Jamie Lee Curtis playing a prostitute named Ophelia who has pity on the miserable Winthorpe.
What works best about Trading Places is the friendship that emerges between Winthorpe and Valentine once they get on the same side and want revenge on those who orchestrated the social experiment. It's a movie that might be called woke today because it has something to say about race, class, and other social issues but it doesn't forget to make you laugh along the way.
The only major problem with the movie is some of the R rated elements feel too vulgar for the tone of the script. I particularly thought the number of times they have Ophelia go topless for no reason seemed excessive. I know she's a prostitute but it felt too much for a character they were trying to humanize and defend only to then exploit her to try and titillate (literally) 80s male audiences.
There is also a scene of Winthorpe in blackface that is unfortunate. It's not a particularly funny scene nor does it have that much to say so it makes the entire scene feel gross.
Other than that Trading Places is a good time at the movies and holds up quite well. I want to say it's one they could remake but it would be impossible with how sensitive everyone is these days when it comes to sensitive issues. We aren't good at laughing at each other now so we don't learn all we can from each other.
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