Raunchy, R-Rated '90s Crime Comedy Proves Why Concealment Should Be Left For Good
Written by Robert Scucci | Published
When the names of Charlie Sheen and Emilio Estevez are mentioned, no one will blame you for thinking fast Hot Shots! again Mighty Ducks. But when the brothers team up in a crime comedy like the 1990s Men at workit's easy to see why they were popular comedians throughout their careers. Men at work benefits from the chemistry of its stars because, although they don't show brothers on the screen, they have the same kind of powerful best friends they don't like that they have, which allows all the high situations they find themselves in to appear as strong and believable, which is not easy when you learn how stupid their situation is.
Men at work was not a huge financial success in its initial release, earning $16.2 million at the box office against its reported production budget of $9 million. And even today, it's far from a critical darling, currently boasting a 30 percent critics score on Rotten Tomatoes and a slightly better 44 percent audience score on Popcornmeter. Like many crime comedies of this era, however, it holds up shockingly because of how hard it sells its premise.
My running theory is that there are so many films like this coming out at the same time that critics are just rushing, and their fatigue shows in the numbers. But just like that Fatal Instinct again National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon 1 (another Emilio Estevez banger), just needs to be made for movies like Men at work. Whether you are or not is entirely up to you, but if you go in blind and like a solid crime comedy, you can't go wrong here.
Two Garbage Men, A Dead Body, and a Toxic Waste Conspiracy
Men at work Centers in the trash Carl Taylor (Charlie Sheen) and James St. James (Emilio Estevez). Day by day, their life is very easy. They collect trash, make a mess by throwing trash cans all over the place, and drive their truck recklessly. Their behavior is so unprofessional that they are put on probation, forcing them to work under the watchful eye of Louis Fedders (Keith David), their boss's brother-in-law.
One day after work, Carl and James are hanging out at the newbie's house when they see Susan Wilkins (Leslie Hope), a woman who lives in the house across the street from Carl who apparently has a crush on him. They see him arguing with the man who lives in his flat, which leads Carl to shoot him in the torso with a gun. The whole story turns into a mysterious murder plot as Carl and James hide under the window laughing when two men enter Susan's house, strangle the man, drag his body out of the building, put the body in a toxic waste drum, and place the drum carelessly in the boot of their car.
The body, which is revealed to be that of City Councilor and mayoral candidate Jack Berger (Darrell Larson), is found the next day by Carl and James while they are walking with Louis because the drum left the beaters' car and went straight to the garbage can sitting next to the curb. Fortunately, Louis, who hates the police, is quick to point out that he didn't actually kill the man with a pellet gun, but he also points out the fact that no one knows that this guy is missing yet, and they have to do something about the body before anyone finds out.
While they figure out their next steps and wait for the whole situation to blow up, they keep Jack's body at Carl's place, hiding his true identity with a Richard Nixon mask. It seems like a solid plan until the pizza man (Dean Cameron) shows up, makes him a witness and causes the gang to kidnap him so he won't be thrown under the bus for a murder he didn't commit.
Things get complicated with Biff (Hawk Wolinski) and Mario (John Lavachielli), who try to find the politician's body after failing to properly dispose of it, and Officer Mike (John Putch), who isn't much of a threat but, for some reason, has been taking out Carl and James.
The Power Brothers Steal the Show
on paper, Men at work an almost perfect comedy of errors, which is also heightened by the chemistry between Sheen and Estevez. Every situation that Carl and James find themselves in is such a lunch that you need charismatic leads to sell it, which they do in spades. The sitcoms alone are enough to keep your eyes glued to the screen, waiting for the next big accident, but it's the stolen glances between Carl and James that add a new layer of charm to the equation. It sounds like two brothers are in over their heads after being caught in the middle of a murder plot, when all they want to do is go to work, come home, open a few drinks, and watch TV.
As Men at work in the barrels in its second and third act, we get a strong story about political corruption, and how working-class men who don't know how much trouble they got into can rise up and become heroes themselves, while all they want to do at the end of the day is go back to their loose lifestyle and forget any of this that ever happened.
If you're looking for a solid, forgettable comedy of errors that probably got a little too much flak from critics when it first made its rounds, stream it. Men at work free on Tubi as of this writing.
