The Nutty Professor (1996)
61%RT Audience Score: 44%
Awards & Nominations: Won 1 Oscar
10 wins & 12 nominations total
The Nutty Professor falls back on juvenile humor eagerly and often, but Eddie Murphy’s consistently funny work in dual roles means more for audiences to love
The Nutty Professor is a movie that will have you laughing so hard, you’ll forget about your own waistline. Eddie Murphy’s performance as Professor Klump is nothing short of amazing, and his portrayal of Klump’s family members is equally impressive. While some critics may say the humor is a bit tasteless, I say it’s just the right amount of nuttiness to make this movie a classic. So grab some popcorn, sit back, and enjoy the ride with the Klump family.
Production Company(ies)
Warner Bros.,
Distributor
Universal Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Biltmore Hotel – 506 S. Grand Avenue, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated PG-13 for crude humor and sexual references
Year of Release
1996
-
Color:Color
-
Sound mix:DTSDTS-Stereo
-
Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
-
Runtime:1h 35m
-
Language(s):English
-
Country of origin:United States
-
Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jun 28, 1996 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 5, 2007
Genre(s)
Comedy
Keyword(s)
starring Eddie Murphy, Jada Pinkett Smith, James Coburn, Larry Miller, Dave Chappelle, John Ales, directed by Tom Shadyac, written by Jerry Lewis, Bill Richmond, David Sheffield, Barry W Blaustein, Tom Shadyac, Steve Oedekerk, comedy, PG-13, Russell Simmons, Brian Grazer, $128.8M box office, reviewed by Owen Gleiberman, Richard Schickel, Kevin McManus, Angie Errigo, Edward Guthmann, Wesley Lovell, Brian Orndorf, Michael Scheinfeld, Eddie Murphy playing multiple roles, weight loss solution, second personality, obnoxious, self-assertive, braggart, bad behavior, chemistry student, depression, side effects, endearing dignity, lounge lizard alter ego, alligator’s bite, grand scale of thespian commitment, vulgar humor, comedic elements, underrated, Dave Chappelle, comedic talent, unique on-screen, irrelevant, unfunny
Worldwide gross: $273,961,019
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $522,921,864
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 270
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 57,025,285
US/Canada gross: $128,814,019
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $245,873,180
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 262
US/Canada opening weekend: $25,411,725
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $48,504,516
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 241
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $54,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $103,072,257
Production budget ranking: 392
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $55,504,411
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $364,345,196
ROI to date (est.): 230%
ROI ranking: 574
Jada Pinkett Smith – Carla Purty
James Coburn – Harlan Hartley
Larry Miller – Dean Richmond
Dave Chappelle – Reggie Warrington
John Ales – Jason
Director(s)
Tom Shadyac
Writer(s)
Jerry Lewis, Bill Richmond, David Sheffield, Barry W. Blaustein, Tom Shadyac, Steve Oedekerk
Producer(s)
Russell Simmons, Brian Grazer
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
Won 1 Oscar
10 wins & 12 nominations total
Academy Awards
Oscar Best Achievement in Makeup Winners, Oscar Winners
All Critics (55) | Top Critics (19) | Fresh (35) | Rotten (20)
September 7, 2011 | Rating: B+
Owen Gleiberman
Entertainment Weekly
TOP CRITIC
[Murphy] is able to invest his Professor Klump with an endearing dignity, give his lounge lizard alter ego, Buddy Love, an alligator’s bite and then go on from there to play Klump’s grandma. Also his mother, father and brother.
June 6, 2009
Richard Schickel
TIME Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Murphy’s most assured work in some time.
March 26, 2009
Variety Staff
Variety
TOP CRITIC
This is good, seamless comedy.
August 20, 2002
Kevin McManus
Washington Post
TOP CRITIC
Delivers belly laughs as huge as Klump’s waistline.
August 13, 2002 | Rating: 4/5
Angie Errigo
Empire Magazine
TOP CRITIC
This is a chance to see Murphy doing what he does best, and for that alone it’s worth seeing.
June 18, 2002 | Rating: 2/4
Edward Guthmann
San Francisco Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
It spends too much time trying to find laughter and not enough time speaking out against fat shaming and our weight-obsessed culture.
January 1, 2016 | Rating: 2/4
Wesley Lovell
Cinema Sight
There’s bold work here from Murphy on grand scale of thespian commitment, yet the feature’s sense of humor is more dreary than playful, killing the potential of the premise with a constant display of bad taste.
August 19, 2012 | Rating: C
Brian Orndorf
Blu-ray.com
A dumb, offensive movie–a good one to skip.
January 2, 2011 | Rating: 1/5
Michael Scheinfeld
Common Sense Media
the beginning of the end for Eddie Murphy
December 2, 2005 | Rating: 3/5
Chris Cabin
Filmcritic.com
July 4, 2005 | Rating: 2/5
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com
Murphy finally revives his considerable comedic gifts for this crowd-pleaser.
June 9, 2005 | Rating: 3/5
Rob Thomas
Capital Times (Madison, WI)…
Plot
Brilliant and obese scientist Sherman Klump invents a miraculous weight-loss solution. After a date with chemistry student Carla Purty goes badly, a depressed Klump tries the solution on himself. Though he instantly loses 250 pounds, the side effects include a second personality: an obnoxiously self-assertive braggart who calls himself Buddy Love. Buddy proves to be more popular than Sherman, but his arrogance and bad behavior quickly spiral out of control.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Eddie Murphy plays multiple roles in the film, including the brilliant but obese scientist Sherman Klump and his obnoxiously self-assertive alter ego, Buddy Love.
Tom-Shadyac.jpg
