How to Beat the High Cost of Living

Description

Funny-women Susan Saint James and Jane Curtin and Oscar® winner* Jessica Lange "are a pleasure to watch" (The Film Journal) in this hysterically funny film about a trio of housewives whose desperate need for money delivers a sizable "supply of laughs" (Boxoffice)!Jane, Elaine and Louise are three women on the verge of a financial breakdown until they spot the "Money Ball," a game involving a six-foot sphere and tons of whirling cash. But Jane, Elaine and Louise don't want to play Money Ball'they want to steal it! Will these inexperienced thieves soon be "rolling in it" or will this first attempt at crime spin them right into jail?*1994: Actress, Blue Sky; 1982: Supporting Actress, Tootsie

Customer Reviews:

This movie is a crack up.......2007-08-24

This movie is fun, different. I have liked since the very first time I saw it on HBO all those years ago. I haven't seen it in a long time and am thrilled to find it again. Total entertainment. Love this. Donna

This movie isn't that great........2006-06-24

I was an extra in this movie, and I was really excited to see it in the theatre. But I was really disappointed. I thought it was a dud. But some people like it, so maybe it's me...

Funny stuff even after all these years! Underrated comic gem!.......2006-03-11

I remember seeing this in the theaters as a kid way back in 1980 (OK, now I officially feel OLD!)...anyway, this is a small, slight, yet hysterically funny and very smart comedy that somehow has fallen off the radar for most audiences - similar to Dolly, Jane, and Lily in "9 to 5," Jane, Jessica, and Susan make a terrific trio of would-be thieves trying to steal a load of cash from the "money ball" in a Pacific Northwest Mall. With cameos from Fred Willard, Eddie Albert, Richard Benjamin, and Dabney Coleman, the entire cast, the screenplay, the direction, and the tacky details of late 70s/early 80s middle-class America are all dead-on hilarious! If they can go ahead and ruin "Fun with Dick and Jane" by doing a remake, why hasn't anyone thought of remaking this underrated comedic gem? Seriously, if you love light, frothy, yet still-topical comedies, give HOW TO BEAT a whirl!

Underrated Gem.......2004-02-07

This is a fabulous, light comedy with a great all-star cast. This is something that deserved to be re-done on DVD. The plot concerns three women who live in Oregon. Jane Curtain is the wife of a wealthy architect. She comes home one day to fine he's run off with another woman, the bank accounts are cleaned out, and he's nowhere to be found. Bills are coming due. Jessica Lange is the wife of a wealthy veternarian played by Richard Benjamin. Her antique store is never profitable and now he has to sue her to please the IRS. She doesn't want to lose the store. Jill St. James is a divorcee with two kids and a deadbeat ex-husband. Her father then moves in with her when her mother takes up with another woman. She's pregnant with her boyfriend and they want to marry, but he has a no-future job, unless he can get the money to buy his boss' hardware store.

All three are friends and all three have something in common: they need money, and they need it now. After some failed schemes to get some, they decide to pull a heist at the local mall.

This is hysterical and tremendously funny. It's nothing deep or life changing, just a lot of intense, non-serious humor, great characters and great situations. Sure, there are some holes and a few scenes don't quite work, but this is something that ought to be in your permanent collection if you like comedies. It's a little dated, but has not lost any of its humor over the years. It's similar to "9 to 5" but I think funnier.

A wry, neglected comedy.......2003-03-09

Although the details are dated, _How To Beat The High Co$t Of Living_ is freshly topical, with the economy in a bad way again. The three heroines' problems are, IMO, partly their own fault---but one has to root for their spunky, ingenious heist.

Jane Curtin improvising a striptease to cover her chums' getaway is a real highlight of the disc. She's game, sexy, and believable in her role---a really talented actress. And, for the record, the power is cut off only in _part_ of the mall, not the whole thing---I saw a review of the movie when it came out that didn't understand this point.

DVD:

DVD

DVD