Down and Out in Beverly Hills is an updated remake of the 1932 Jean Renoir film Boudu Saved From Drowning. Philandering businessman Dave Whiteman (Richard Dreyfuss) rescues scraggly tramp Jerry Baskin (Nick Nolte) from drowning himself in Dave's swimming pool. Much against his will, Jerry is invited to enjoy the hospitality of Dave, his social-climbing wife, Barbara (Bette Midler), and their sexually ambivalent son, Max (Evan Richards). The hapless hobo bonds only with the family dog, Matisse, which fascinates Barbara to the point that she's willing to share her bed (and a few other things) with him. Dave is twice cuckolded when Jerry makes out with the maid (Elizabeth Peña), with whom he has been carrying on a torrid -- and noisy -- affair. He plans to wreak revenge on the tramp, but several plot twists result in Dave and Jerry becoming bosom companions. Little Richard appears as the family's easily irritated next-door neighbor. Down and Out in Beverly Hills was the R-rated film that compelled Disney to create its adult-oriented Touchstone Films division. The property was later cleaned up for TV consumption and converted into a short-lived Fox-network sitcom. Hal Erickson, Rovi
The last film to be co-directed by Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, and Jerry Zucker, Ruthless People stars Bette Midler (capitalizing on her comeback performance in Down and Out in Beverly Hills) as Barbara, a spoiled rich woman who is kidnapped by the kindly Ken and Sandy Kessler (Judge Reinhold and Helen Slater). Barbara's forceful husband Sam (Danny DeVito) has ripped off the Kesslers and they decide to hold Barbara for ransom. Sam, who hates his wife, refuses to pay. Eventually Barbara befriends the Kesslers and together they figure out how to exact revenge upon the obnoxious Sam. Bill Pullman makes his film debut here as a very dim, would-be criminal. Perry Seibert, Rovi
Two women with serious differences are forced to look out for each other in this anarchic comedy. Sandy (Bette Midler) and Lauren (Shelley Long) are a pair of struggling actresses who don't get along especially well -- and are even less fond of each other when they discover that they're both dating the same man, Michael (Peter Coyote). However, when Michael suddenly goes missing, they discover that he's actually an espionage agent working with a foreign government, and as they set out to find him, they learn that he has implicated them in his schemes. Now Sandy and Lauren are stuck with each other as they look for Michael while trying to outrun the law. Outrageous Fortune also stars George Carlin as Frank, a burned-out '60s holdover who the women meet along the way. Mark Deming, Rovi
- Genre: Comedy
- Category Odd Couple Film, Buddy Film, Comedy of Manners, Crime Comedy, Domestic Comedy, Farce, Action Comedy
- Theme: Out For Revenge, Servants and Employers, Kidnapping, Class Differences, Big Break, Nothing Goes Right, Suburban Dysfunction, Actor's Life
- Studio: Touchstone/Disney
- Run Time: 04 hr 52 min
- Language: English
- Picture Format: widescreen
- Lead Actor: Nick Nolte, Danny DeVito, Bette Midler, Richard Dreyfuss, Shelley Long
- Supporting Actor: Bob O'Connell, Barney Garcia, Arturo Bonilla, Ade Small, Nick Ullett, Yung Sun, Twyla Littleton, Tony Epper, Susan Marie Snyder, Salvador R. Espinoza, Reza Bashar, Pearl Huang, Neil Cunningham, Michel Voletti, Louise Yaffe, Leland Sun, Jon Cutler, Jason Williams, George Sasaki, Gary Riley, Dr. Toni Grant, Dorothy Tristan, Donald V. Allen, Donald Ambabo, Charlotte Zucker, Carlton Cuse, Bob Tzudiker, Bill Marcus, Bill Hart, Bill Cross, Alexis Arquette, Thom Dillon, Tom Lillard, Sue Kiel, Steve Rotblatt, R.G. Clayton, Barry Primus, Allan Malamud, Andre Philippe, Arnold Turner, Carolyn Allport, Christopher McDonald, Coral Kassel, Florence Stanley, J. Clell Miller, Jack Bruskoff, James Espinoza, James McIntire, Janet Rotblatt, Jeannine Bisignano, Joan McMurtrey, John de Santi, Lew Hopson, Margrit Ramme, Michael Blue, Neil Hunt, Pat Santino, Paul Brooks, Philip L. Mead, Valerie Curtin, Paul Mazursky, J.E. Freeman, Clarence Felder, Donald F. Muhich, Art Evans, Ji-Tu Cumbuka, Evan Richards, Anthony Heald, William G. Schilling, Elizabeth Peña, Bill Pullman, George Carlin, Tracy Nelson, John Schuck, Anita Morris, Robert Prosky, Little Richard, Helen Slater, Peter Coyote, Judge Reinhold, Bette Midler, Diana Bellamy, Michael Yama, Raymond Lee, Sally Brown, Tammy Manville, Barbara DeKins, Anna Marie Wieder, Ranbir Bahi, Betsy Mazursky, Mike Henry, Bobby Good, Bunny Summers, Darryl Henriques, Ken Koch, Joseph Makkar, Johnny Sanchez, Ebbe Roe Smith, Michael Greene, Eugene Choy, Eyan Williams, Irene Tsu, J.W. Smith, Jerry Zaks, Jim Doughan, Mae Koh-Ruden, Lonna Montrose, Sandy Ignon, Sandra Eng, Roger Engstrom, Robert Pastorelli, Phyllis Applegate, Mike the Dog, J.P. Bumstead, Greg Mace, Geraldine Dreyfuss, Gary Morgan, Frank Sivero, Felton Perry, Eloy Casados, Debra A. Deliso, Christopher Keene, Carol-Ann Susi
- Director: Paul Mazursky, David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, Jerry Zucker, Arthur Hiller
