Paramount Presents: TRADING PLACES [1983 / 2020] [37th Anniversary Edition] [Blu-ray + Digital] [USA Release] They’re Not Just Getting Rich . . . They’re Getting Even! Some Funny Business!
The very rich and extremely greedy Duke Brothers [Don Ameche and Ralph Bellamy] wager a bet over whether “born-loser” Billy Ray Valentine [Eddie Murphy] could become as successful as the priggish Louis Winthorpe III [Dan Akroyd] if circumstances were reversed. So begins one of the funniest, most outrageous comedies of the 1980’s, cementing Eddie Murphy’s superstar status. Alongside the street-smarts of Ophelia [Jamie Lee Curtis], Louis Winthorpe III and Billy Ray Valentine are a trio ready for a riotous revenge that culminates on the commodities trading floor in New York City. ‘TRADING PLACES’ is presented here newly remastered from a 4K film transfer, under the supervision of director John Landis.
Paramount Pictures Home Entertainment is proud to spotlight a new line of Blu-ray releases for collectors and fans – PARAMOUNT PRESENTS. From celebrated classics to film-lover favourites, each title comes directly from the studio’s renowned library, spanning over 100 years of storytelling. The films have never looked better on Blu-ray – each lovingly remastered from 4K film transfers, featuring never-before-seen bonus content, and exclusive collectable packaging.
FILM FACT No.1: Awards and Nominations: 1983 Image Awards: Win: Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture for Eddie Murphy. 1984 Academy Awards®: Nomination: Best Music, Original Song Score and Its Adaptation or Best Adaptation Score for Elmer Bernstein. 1984 Golden Globes: Nomination: Best Motion Picture in a Comedy or Musical. Nomination: Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture in a Comedy or Musical for Eddie Murphy. 1984 BAFTA Film Awards: Win: Best Supporting Actor for Denholm Elliott. Win: Best Supporting Actress for Jamie Lee Curtis. Win: Best Original Screenplay for Herschel Weingrod and Timothy Harris. 1984 Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists: Nomination: Silver Ribbon for Best Foreign Director (Regista del Miglior Film Straniero) for John Landis.
FILM FACT No.2: The cast also includes Robert Curtis-Brown as Todd, Louis Winthorpe III's romantic rival for Penelope; James Belushi as Harvey, a party-goer on New Year's Eve; Jamie Lee Curtis's sister Kelly Curtis cameos as Penelope's friend Muffy; Muppet puppeteer Frank Oz as a police officer; James Eckhouse as a Guard; Giancarlo Esposito as a cellmate #2; Muppet puppeteer Richard Hunt as Wilson a police officer and Bo Diddley as a pawnbroker. “Saturday Night Live” cast members Al Franken as Baggage Handler #1 and Tom Davis as Baggage Handler #2 have a cameo scene as the train baggage handlers.
Cast: Denholm Elliott, Dan Aykroyd, Maurice Woods, Richard D. Fisher Jr., Jim Gallagher, Anthony DiSabatino, Bonnie Behrend, Sunnie Merrill, James Newell, Mary St. John, Bonnie Tremena, David Schwartz, Ralph Bellamy, Don Ameche, Tom Degidon, William Magerman, Alan Dellay, Florence Anglin, Ray D'Amore, Bobra Suiter, Herb Peterson, Sue Dugan, Walt Gorney, B. Constance Barry, P. Jay Sidney, Eddie Murphy, Avon Long, Tom Mardirosian, Charles Brown, Robert Curtis-Brown, Nicholas Guest, John Bedford-Lloyd, Tony Sherer, Robert Earl Jones, Robert E. Lee, Peter Hock, Kristin Holby, Clint Smith, Ron Taylor, James D. Turner, Giancarlo Esposito, Steve Hofvendahl, James Eckhouse, Paul Gleason, Gwyllum Evans, Frank Oz, Eddie Jones, John McCurry, Michelle Mais, Barra Kahn, Bill Cobbs, Joshua Daniel, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jacques Sandulescu, W.B. Brydon, Margaret H. Flynn, Kelly Curtis, Tracy K. Shaffer, Susan Fallender, Bo Diddley, Alfred Drake, Lucianne Buchanan, Paul Garcia, Jed Gillin, Jimmy Raitt, Kate Taylor, Philip Bosco, Bill Boggs, Jim Belushi, Deborah Reagan, Al Franken, Tom Davis, Don McLeod (Gorilla), Stephen Stucker, Richard Hunt, Paul Austin, John Randolph Jones, Jack Davidson, Bernie McInerney, Maurice D. Copeland, Ralph Clanton, Bryan Clark, Gary Howard Klar, Afemo Omilami, Shelly Chee Chee Hall, Donna Palmer, Barry Dennen, Murray Bandel (uncredited), Peter Fey (uncredited), George Folsey Jr. (uncredited), John Landis (Man with briefcase) (uncredited), Shirley Levine (uncredited), Charles Pendelton (uncredited), Yvonna Russell (uncredited), Arleen Sorkin (uncredited), Ronald Sylvers (uncredited) and Marlene Willoughby (uncredited)
Director: John Landis
Producers: Aaron Russo, George Folsey Jr., Irwin Russo and Sam Williams
Screenplay: Herschel Weingrod and Timothy Harris
Composer: Elmer Bernstein
Cinematography: Robert William Paynter, B.S.C. (Director of Photography)
Image Resolution: 1080p [Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Audio: English: 5.1 Dolby TrueHD Audio
German: 1.0 Dolby Digital Mono Audio
French: 1.0 Dolby Digital Mono Audio
Japanese: 1.0 Dolby Digital Mono Audio
English: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Isolated Score Track: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Subtitles: English, English SDH, German, French and Japanese
Running Time: 116 minutes
Region: All Regions
Number of discs: 1
Studio: Paramount Pictures
Andrew’s Blu-ray Review: The film ‘TRADING PLACES’ [1983] is justifiable a total classic hilarious funny film: not just the ultimate Christmas film but the best film about financial markets ever made and is a hilarious morality tale set in the Philadelphia of the early 1980s. From the zany, slapdash comedy of ‘National Lampoon's Animal House’ and ‘The Blues Brothers,’ director John Landis has graduated to the consummately slick entertainment that is the hilarious ‘TRADING PLACES,’ and it’s the 37th Anniversary Edition of the Greatest Wall Street film ever made, and here is the story behind it.
This shrewd but very likable and thought provoking moral tale of a film is more polished than John Landis's other films, and is definitely geared to a much wider audience than even the sizable ‘Animal House’ crowd pleaser. ‘TRADING PLACES’ is a big, lavishly staged farce that aims to please even those who favour a more sophisticated screwball comedy, a genre to which it is greatly indebted.
The premise of the film ‘TRADING PLACES’ is a tale that begins, when we are introduced to Louis Winthorpe the 3rd [Dan Aykroyd], who is a rich twit of peerless pomposity, who resides in the elegant, wood panelled mansion, where Louis Winthorpe the 3rd is fed breakfast in bed and then dressed by his British butler Coleman [Denholm Elliott], after which he is whisked off to the huge Philadelphia commodity brokerage firm that he heads. But Louis Winthorpe the 3rd, it soon turns out, does not own the company; he merely manages it. The owners are two extremely sneaky older gentlemen, the Duke Brothers whose mantra is, ''Mother always said you were greedy,'' snap’s one and the other brother sarcastic comment says, “She meant it as a compliment.'' And where Louis Winthorpe the 3rd is concerned, they have a big surprise in store.
The Duke Brothers, here played totally delightfully by Mr. Bellamy and Mr. Don Ameche and make a scientific wager. What would happen if an aristocratic chump like Louis Winthorpe the 3rd were forced to switch places with the lowliest derelict on the streets of Philadelphia? Or would the two men take on each other's behavioural characteristics? In the course of theorizing about this, the two Duke Brothers encounter Billy Ray Valentine [Eddie Murphy], who is posing as a blind, legless beggar outside their club. This strikes the Duke Brothers as being rather enterprising of Billy Ray, and they decide he is the man to be put in Louis Winthorpe the 3rd's handmade leather shoes.
With a magical swiftness, Louis Winthorpe the 3rd finds himself in jail and Billy Ray Valentine has been installed in the mansion, which belonged to the Duke Brothers after all. At first, Billy Ray Valentine isn't quite used to the place, and so he steals little curios from the drawing room and invites some ghetto friends over for a wild party. It doesn't take long for Billy Ray Valentine to scream at these revellers: ''Hey, hey, hey – have you people ever heard of coasters?'' Meanwhile, the newly disgraced Louis Winthorpe the 3rd has found his way to a pawnshop, where he tries to peddle ''the sports watch of the 1980's'' to a hip proprietor played by Bo Diddley.
‘TRADING PLACES’ is on solid ground while the jokes about this turnabout hold out really well. Later on, it gets a little shakier as Louis Winthorpe the 3rd and Billy Ray Valentine band together to outsmart the Dukes Brothers, since this extravagant-looking film is itself too obviously enamoured of wealth and prosperity to rail at the establishment with any real conviction. Everyone in the film aspires to the prosperity that is also so cleverly mocked here. In a particularly inspired touch, Louis Winthorpe the 3rd's blue-blooded fiancée Penelope Witherspoon who is played by Kristin Holmby, the cool, brunette model who embodies much the same values in her Ralph Lauren advertisements more than people. Needless to say, Penelope Witherspoon does not exactly stand by Louis Winthorpe the 3rd when the chips are down.
Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy are not required to do much teamwork, but they do work together most deftly when the occasion arises. Throughout most of the film, they appear in parallel subplots, each in a role that appears tailor-made to his talents. Dan Aykroyd makes a wonderfully convincing stiff, especially where he plays Louis Winthorpe the 3rd with a hilarious rigidity that eventually and in one memorable sequence in the film, where Louis Winthorpe the 3rd is masquerading as a mad Santa Clause and heads right over the edge. Eddie Murphy is once again playing a ghetto wise-guy turned well-heeled dandy, and doing it very appealingly. The supporting cast is also quite good, most notably Don Ameche, Ralph Bellamy, Denholm Elliott and Ms. Jamie Lee Curtis, who manages to turn a hard-edged, miniskirt prostitute into a character of unexpected wonderful charm for the underdog.
As the ‘TRADING PLACES’ film progresses, inevitably there is an incredible turn of fortune is milked for all it's worth as Dan Aykroyd can only watch as Eddie Murphy who quickly adapts to the high life with consummate ease. Both actors revel in their respective parts and veterans Don Ameche and Ralph Bellamy are a total delight as the two scheming Dukes Brothers whose simple bet results in the most extraordinary chain of events.
‘TRADING PLACES’ is utterly hilarious from start to finish, while at the same time capturing how financial markets work with pitch-perfect accuracy. Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy have never been better in their roles as Louis Winthorpe the 3rd and Billy Ray Valentine, and there are splendid supporting performances from Don Ameche and Ralph Bellamy as the Duke Brothers, Denholm Elliott as Coleman the butler, and Jamie Lee Curtis as Ophelia the hooker with the heart of gold and also the wonderful cameo from Bo Diddley as the pawnbroker.
Top quote: “In this building, it’s either kill or be killed. You make no friends in the pits and you take no prisoners. One minute you’re up half a million in soybeans and the next, boom, your kids don’t go to college and they’ve repossessed your Bentley.”
TRADING PLACES MUSIC TRACK LIST
OVERTURE, MARRIAGE OF FIGARO (Written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) [Conducted by Elmer Bernstein]
ANDANTE CANTABILE From K-465 (Written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) [Performed by Murray Adler, Harris Goldman, David Schwartz and Armand Kaproff]
OUT OF THE SHEETS – INTO THE STREETS (Written by David Williams) [Performed by David Williams]
DO YOU WANNA FUNK (Written by Patrick Cowley and Sylvester) [Performed by Sylvester]
ORALEE COOKIES (Written by Nicholas Guest and Robert Curtis Brown) [Performed by "The Hot Toddies"]
THE LOUIS WINTHORPE III BLUES [Performed by Michael Lang, Chuck Domanico, George Doering and Ron Lee]
JINGLE BELL ROCK (Written by Joe Beal and Jim Boothe) [Performed by Brenda Lee]
THE BIG WALTZ (Written by Lyn Murray)
THE LOCO-MOTION (Written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King) [Performed by Little Eva]
GET A JOB (Written by The Silhouettes) [Performed by The Silhouettes]
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Blu-ray Image Quality – Paramount Pictures presents us with a very good and a very exceptional 1080p high definition with an aspect ratio of 1.85:1 that looks equally impressive. The print is clean in terms of scuffs and nicks, though it does have some grain, but that never amounts to much. The colours are natural in scope and retain proper brightness, while black levels come off as accurate and well balanced also. Having never owned a copy of ‘TRADING PLACES’ in any video format, especially an inferior DVD copy, I was not able to compare this Blu-ray presentation of the film with any other video format. I must say, that the opening shots of Philadelphia, in all its picturesque and colourful wonder, are a very good indication of what to expect with the main film to come. Throughout, I was trying to find flaws and problems which might come with this film made in the early 1980s and I was not able to detect nothing of significance. The image quality exhibits a somewhat soft picture with a consistent grain structure which is very pleasing to the eye. Fine details are generally lacking, but in this comedy film where lines deliveries and facial expressions are all important, and microscopic lines and textures of the actor’s facial expressions are well featured. Shades of brown in the oak and maple settings of the opulent Louis Winthorpe the 3rd dwelling are warm and distinctive. Other colours like Eddie Murphy's red hoodie, and the extra blue tee shirt, and the costumes worn by partygoers on a train look very natural in appearance and show off the production values very well. Overall, I really can't see anyone complaining about this 37th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray release.
Blu-ray Audio Quality – Paramount Pictures brings you this Blu-ray with an excellent 5.1 Dolby TrueHD Audio. However, the audio sound mix is more than sufficient for this film which is primarily reliant on the voices of the actors, which definitely comes through very clearly and very intelligibly. I was afraid of some sort of gimmick manipulations with the dialogue where characters might be heard dominating one channel over the other, but fortunately, the centre channel anchors the actors straight down the middle of your living room. Originally released in mono, the surround remix brings life to Elmer Bernstein's film music score, where the sounds of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart are heard rousingly during the opening credits of the film. Dynamics and bass response are modest unless where the pop music is played prominently in certain scenes in the film, but directional sounds is likewise kept to a minimum. The audio here is mostly dialogue driven. The music is able to use the speakers well and add some life, while a few scenes have some solid presence also, especially with stuff like traffic noises, background audio, and other more subtle sound effects, but those add to the overall ambient atmosphere, especially in more reserved material like this. But the dialogue is still the main focus and it sounds great, very crisp and clean throughout the film. Overall, I did not detect any flaws or errors with this very nice audio track.
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Blu-ray Special Features and Extras:
Special Feature: Film Focus: John Landis on ‘TRADING PLACES’ [2020] [1080p] [1.78:1] [8:46] John Landis [Director] talks in-depth the reason he enjoyed and loved making the film ‘TRADING PLACES’ and was intended to invoke the holiday. The image of Dan Aykroyd as a reprobate, drunken, suicidal Santa is indelible, and we wanted to make it seem like Christmas, but it was not my intention to make it a Christmas film. The ‘TRADING PLACES’ soundtrack album has a wonderful score by Elmer Bernstein, which is one-third Mozart as we used The Marriage of Figaro and two-thirds Elmer Bernstein. John Landis also reminisces about the film, and remembering the original rough draft script, casting and performances of the cast in key scenes. We also get the back story to the film, the casting and John Landis wasn’t familiar with Eddie Murphy, but had worked with Dan Aykroyd on several previous occasions, and the long-lasting impact of the film especially with all the fans of the film. The interview acts almost as an introduction to the film.
Special Feature: The Deleted Scene [2007] [480i] [1.37:1] [3:08] Here we get to view a small scene that was cut due to the pacing of the film.
Special Feature: The Deleted Scene [With optional audio commentary with Executive Producer George Folsey, Jr.] [2007] [1080p] [1.37:1] [1:46] Here once again we get to view a small scene that was cut due to the pacing of the film which George Folsey, Jr. explains in great detail. For some unknown reason this is much shorter deleted scene.
Special Feature: Insider Trading: The Making of ‘TRADING PLACES’ [2007] [1080p] [1.37:1] [18:28] A newly created short documentary with some interviews with the cast, crew, screenwriters and some behind-the-scenes footage, as well as lots of clips from the film. Contributors include: John Landis [Director], Timothy Harris [Screenwriter], Herschel Weingrod [Screenwriter], Eddie Murphy [Billy Ray Valentine] (archive footage), George Folsey, Jr. [Executive Producer], Dan Aykroyd [Louis Winthorpe the 3rd] and Jamie Lee Curtis [Ophelia].
Special Feature: Dressing the Part [2007] [1080p] [1.37:1] [6:29] Costume Designer Deborah Nadoolman discusses her contribution to the story. This is basically a costume design piece with some insight into what clothing was chosen for the characters in the film and with the clips from the film ‘TRADING PLACES’ you get to see why Deborah Nadoolman designed the clothing for the specific characters in the film. Contributors include: Deborah Nadoolman [Costume Designer] and John Landis [Director]
Special Feature: The Trade in ‘TRADING PLACES’ [2007] [1080p] [1.37:1] [5:24] Commodities brokers discuss what the business in the film entails and explain just what happened at the end and something some folks are very confused about it to this day and we see also clips from the film that relates what these Commodities brokers do at the New York Stock Exchange. If you don’t quite get how the financial aspect of the film worked and I did not, well these Wall Street suits explain it all to you in a language I did not understand and even John Landis did not understand the process and was a complete failure at school with maths and also like me. Contributors include: Roger Corrado [Vice Chairman of the New York Board of Trade], Bret Williams [Proprietary Trader], Richard Schaeffer [Chairman of the New York Mercantile Exchange], Herschel Weingrod [Screenwriter] and John Landis [Director].
Special Feature: Trading Stories [1983] [480i] [1.37:1] [7:58] With this special feature, we get to view some vintage interviews of a promotional press junket for the film ‘TRADING PLACES’ in the United Kingdom when the film opened in cinemas in 1983 and these interviews have not been seen in more than 20 years. Here we get to meet four of the people that were involved with the film, but look at the person in a pink leather suit that I'm sure he would rather forget; obviously someone did not feel to give some advice on this fashion faux pas. Contributors include: Jamie Lee Curtis [Ophelia], Eddie Murphy [Billy Ray Valentine], Dan Aykroyd [Louis Winthorpe the 3rd] and John Landis [Director].
Special Feature: Industry Promotional Piece [1983] [480i] [1.37:1] [4:17] A short film made for the 1983 ShoWest exhibitors convention, where they showed a rough working print of the film ‘TRADING PLACES’ where Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy tried their best at explaining what the film was all about before going out in front of an audience to again explain what the film was all about and we also get some clips from the film. For some unknown reason, the two actors were in the exhibitor’s convention public urinal and for some unknown reason they start going into doing lots of silly funny voices. Contributors include: John Landis [Director], ], Dan Aykroyd [Louis Winthorpe the 3rd] and Eddie Murphy [Billy Ray Valentine.
Theatrical Trailer [1983] [1080p] [1.37:1] [2:50] This is the Original Theatrical Trailer for the film ‘TRADING PLACES.’
Finally, there is no denying it, ‘TRADING PLACES’ is an absolute classic comedy film in every sense of the word. It’s one of those films that I can watch any time of any day. Add to that, it’s the only place that I know of, to see a topless Jamie Lee Curtis that might not mean a lot now, but back in the day…! ‘TRADING PLACES’ also holds up extremely well as one of the better comedies from the early 1980s. Its premise is still timely, it’s got a great cast, and not a scene goes by without at least a couple of big belly laughs. Paramount Pictures has finally served up a special edition of this Blu-ray for fans of their favourite and mine to, and it makes for a fairly solid Blu-ray release and the transfer is better than expected, and there are a handful of good solid special feature supplements as a bonus with this Blu-ray disc. So all in all it is well worth a purchase for fans of this film, and if you've never seen ‘TRADING PLACES’ before, then this is definitely a must have purchase. Very Highly Recommended!
Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film Aficionado
Le Cinema Paradiso
United Kingdom
