crime comedy film
Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...
based on
Janet Evanovich
Janet Evanovich (née Schneider; April 22, 1943) is an American writer. She began her career writing short contemporary romance novels under the pen name Steffie Hall, but gained fame authoring a series of contemporary mysteries featuring Step ...
Julie Anne Robinson
Julie Anne Robinson is a British theatre, television, film director and producer based in the United States and United Kingdom. She is known for her work on '' The Catch,'' which she developed and executive produced with Shonda Rhimes, as well a ...
, the screenplay was written by
Liz Brixius
Liz Brixius is an American television writer and producer.
In 2008 Brixius, Linda Wallem, and Evan Dunsky, created the series ''Nurse Jackie'', a half-hour drama about a "flawed" emergency room nurse in a New York City hospital. Starring Edie F ...
Katherine Heigl
Katherine Marie Heigl ( ; born November 24, 1978) is an American actress and former fashion model. She played Dr. Izzie Stevens on the ABC television medical drama ''Grey's Anatomy'' from 2005 to 2010, a role that brought her recognition and ...
,
Jason O'Mara
Jason O'Mara (born 6 August 1972) is an Irish actor. He has starred in the American television network dramas ''In Justice'', ''Life on Mars'', '' Terra Nova'', ''Vegas'', and ''Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.''. O'Mara won an Irish Film and Television A ...
Daniel Sunjata
Daniel Sunjata Condon (born December 30, 1971) is an American actor who performs in film, television and theater. He is known for his role as Franco Rivera in the FX television series '' Rescue Me''.
Early life and education
Sunjata was born a ...
and
Sherri Shepherd
Sherri Shepherd (born April 22, 1967) is an American actress, comedian, author, broadcaster, and television personality. She currently hosts the daily syndicated daytime talk show, '' Sherri''. From 2007 to 2014, Shepherd was a co-host of the da ...
. The story revolves around Stephanie Plum, a broke and unemployed woman becoming a bail enforcement agent, going after a former high school crush who both skipped out on his payments and is a murder suspect.
The film was in development hell after Columbia and
TriStar Pictures
TriStar Pictures, Inc. (spelled as Tri-Star until 1991) is an American film studio and production company that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, part of the multinational conglomerate Sony. It is a corporate sibling of Sony ...
had purchased the novel's adaptation rights in 1997. In April 2010,
Lionsgate
Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation, doing business as Lionsgate, is a Canadian-American entertainment company. It was formed by Frank Giustra on July 10, 1997, domiciled in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and is currently headquartered ...
acquired the distribution rights. Produced by Lakeshore and
Sidney Kimmel Entertainment
Sidney Kimmel Entertainment is an American financer, film and television production company founded in 2004 by philanthropist and film producer Sidney Kimmel. Sidney Kimmel Entertainment focuses on bringing entertainment projects to audiences i ...
,
principal photography
Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production.
Personnel
Besides the main film personnel, such as a ...
Beaver County, Pennsylvania
Beaver County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 168,215. Its county seat is Beaver. The county was created on March 12, 1800, from parts of Allegheny and Washington counties. It took ...
. This film was the last theatrical appearance of Debbie Reynolds before her death on December 28, 2016.
''One for the Money'' was theatrically released in the United States on January 27, 2012 and was both a critical and commercial failure. The film received extremely negative reviews from critics, with many criticizing the script and Heigl's performance, and grossed just $38 million worldwide against a $40 million budget.
Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784.Stephanie Plum is divorced and out of work. Seeking a job at her cousin Vinnie's
bail bonds
Bail is a set of pre-trial restrictions that are imposed on a suspect to ensure that they will not hamper the judicial process. Bail is the conditional release of a defendant with the promise to appear in court when required.
In some countries, ...
business, she blackmails him into letting her become a bail enforcement agent and tracks down fugitive Joe Morelli, her high school ex-boyfriend who has skipped his $500,000 bail. Morelli escapes the inexperienced Stephanie, who turns to veteran bounty hunter Ricardo "Ranger" Manoso for help. Explaining that Morelli, a vice detective, is wanted for the murder of heroin dealer Ziggy Kulesza, Ranger buys Stephanie a gun.
Police officer Eddie Gazarra, Stephanie's friend, informs her that Morelli shot Ziggy at the apartment of prostitute Carmen Sanchez. Morelli claimed to act in self-defense, but no evidence could be found that Ziggy had a gun, and Carmen and another man at the apartment have disappeared. Stephanie befriends a prostitute named Lula, who points her to a boxing gym where she questions
cage fighter
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...
Benito Ramirez, Carmen's boyfriend, and his manager Jimmy Alpha. Before Ramirez can assault her, she is rescued by Morelli, who reveals that Carmen was his informant and suspects Ramirez is responsible for her disappearance.
Stephanie receives a threatening call from Ramirez, and commandeers Morelli's car after searching his apartment. Desperate for money, she recovers her first fugitive, delivering her nudist neighbor to the police for
failure to appear
A "failure to appear" (FTA) occurs when a defendant or respondent does not come before a tribunal as directed in a summons. FTAs are also known as "bail jumping." In the United States, FTAs are punishable by fines, incarceration, or both when com ...
. In the shower, she is confronted by Morelli and left handcuffed and naked, forcing her to call Ranger for help. She visits Carmen's apartment and meets John Cho, a neighbor who witnessed the shooting. He explains that he knocked Morelli unconscious, after which a "flat-nosed guy" fled the apartment. After capturing another fugitive, who first steals her gun and shoots at Ranger, Stephanie learns that Cho has been killed.
She is tailed by Ramirez, who leaves Lula badly beaten outside Stephanie's apartment. Morelli asks for Stephanie's help in clearing his name, in exchange for sole credit and payment for his capture, and she agrees, allowing him to lay low at her apartment. Vinnie's regular recovery agent Morty Beyers arrives to take over Morelli's bounty, and steals the keys to Morelli's car, but is killed by a car bomb intended for Stephanie, and Carmen’s apartment building is fire-bombed. Wearing a
wire
Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample diameter 40 mm
A wire is a flexible strand of metal.
Wire is c ...
so Morelli can track her movements from nearby, Stephanie spots the flat-nosed man at a butcher shop frequented by Ziggy. The man loads two barrels onto a truck, and Stephanie follows him and the butcher to a marina, where she and Morelli discover the butcher’s boat is being used to transport heroin.
Hearing gunshots, they find the flat-nosed man and the butcher shot dead in the truck, and Carmen's body in one of the barrels. They are attacked by Ramirez and subdue him, but are held at gunpoint by Jimmy Alpha. He admits that he, Ramirez, and Ziggy were selling heroin, and killed Carmen for informing on them to Morelli; at Carmen’s apartment, Ziggy did try to kill Morelli, but the flat-nosed man fled with Ziggy's gun. Stephanie manages to shoot Jimmy dead, but locks Morelli in the truck and delivers him to the police, along with her covert recording of Jimmy's confession, which exonerates Morelli. She collects the $50,000 bounty for Morelli, who arrives at her door, and they rekindle their relationship.
Cast
*
Katherine Heigl
Katherine Marie Heigl ( ; born November 24, 1978) is an American actress and former fashion model. She played Dr. Izzie Stevens on the ABC television medical drama ''Grey's Anatomy'' from 2005 to 2010, a role that brought her recognition and ...
Jason O'Mara
Jason O'Mara (born 6 August 1972) is an Irish actor. He has starred in the American television network dramas ''In Justice'', ''Life on Mars'', '' Terra Nova'', ''Vegas'', and ''Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.''. O'Mara won an Irish Film and Television A ...
as Joseph "Joe" Morelli
*
Daniel Sunjata
Daniel Sunjata Condon (born December 30, 1971) is an American actor who performs in film, television and theater. He is known for his role as Franco Rivera in the FX television series '' Rescue Me''.
Early life and education
Sunjata was born a ...
as Ricardo "Ranger" Carlos Manoso
*
John Leguizamo
John Alberto Leguizamo Peláez (; ; born July 22, 196013:04) is an American actor, comedian, and film producer. He has appeared in over 100 films, produced over 20 films and documentaries, made over 30 television appearances, and has produced ...
as Jimmy Alpha
*
Sherri Shepherd
Sherri Shepherd (born April 22, 1967) is an American actress, comedian, author, broadcaster, and television personality. She currently hosts the daily syndicated daytime talk show, '' Sherri''. From 2007 to 2014, Shepherd was a co-host of the da ...
Debra Monk
Debra Monk (born February 27, 1949) is an American actress, singer, and writer, best known for her performances on the Broadway stage. She earned her first Tony Award for the 1993 production of ''Redwood Curtain'' and won an Emmy Award for sev ...
as Helen Mazur Plum
* Nate Mooney as Eddie Gazarra
* Adam Paul as Bernie Kuntz
*
Fisher Stevens
Fisher Stevens (born Steven Fisher; November 27, 1963) is an American actor, director, producer and writer. As an actor, he is best known for his portrayals of Ben in ''Short Circuit'' and '' Short Circuit 2'', Chuck Fishman on the 1990s televi ...
Leonardo Nam
Leonardo Nam (born November 5, 1979) is an Australian actor. He made his breakthrough as Roy in '' The Perfect Score'' (2004), and gained further recognition for his roles as Morimoto in '' The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift'' (2006) and Bria ...
Danny Mastrogiorgio
Danny Mastrogiorgio (born October 26, 1964) is an American actor who has also provided voice work for video games. He is best known for providing the voice of Toni Cipriani in the 2005 video game '' Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories'' and f ...
as Lenny
* Gavin-Keith Umeh as Benito Ramirez
*
Louis Mustillo
Louis Mustillo (born May 28, 1958) is an American actor who is best known as playing Vincent “Vince” Moranto on '' Mike & Molly'' from 2010 to 2016.
Life and career
Mustillo was born in Buffalo, New York. He attended American Academy of Dra ...
Olga Merediz
Olga Merediz (born February 15, 1956) is an American actress and singer. Merediz originated the role of Abuela Claudia in the Broadway musical ''In the Heights'', for which she received a Tony Award nomination for Best Performance by a Featured ...
as Rosa Gomez
Production
In an October 2010 interview, author
Janet Evanovich
Janet Evanovich (née Schneider; April 22, 1943) is an American writer. She began her career writing short contemporary romance novels under the pen name Steffie Hall, but gained fame authoring a series of contemporary mysteries featuring Step ...
stated that
TriStar Pictures
TriStar Pictures, Inc. (spelled as Tri-Star until 1991) is an American film studio and production company that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, part of the multinational conglomerate Sony. It is a corporate sibling of Sony ...
had purchased the rights to her novel thirteen years previously, and the film had been in development hell since that time. When asked about the status of the film, Evanovich commented, "Hard to believe they've been sitting on this multi-million dollar franchise for all these years but go figure." In February 2010, ''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' announced that
Katherine Heigl
Katherine Marie Heigl ( ; born November 24, 1978) is an American actress and former fashion model. She played Dr. Izzie Stevens on the ABC television medical drama ''Grey's Anatomy'' from 2005 to 2010, a role that brought her recognition and ...
had been cast to play Stephanie Plum. In April 2010,
Lionsgate
Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation, doing business as Lionsgate, is a Canadian-American entertainment company. It was formed by Frank Giustra on July 10, 1997, domiciled in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and is currently headquartered ...
announced that they had acquired distribution rights, would co-produce with
Sidney Kimmel Entertainment
Sidney Kimmel Entertainment is an American financer, film and television production company founded in 2004 by philanthropist and film producer Sidney Kimmel. Sidney Kimmel Entertainment focuses on bringing entertainment projects to audiences i ...
and
Lakeshore Entertainment
Lakeshore Entertainment Group, LLC is an American independent film production, finance, and former international sales and distribution company founded in 1994 by Tom Rosenberg and Ted Tannebaum (1933–2002). Lakeshore Entertainment is headquart ...
(which had acquired the rights from Columbia), and
Julie Anne Robinson
Julie Anne Robinson is a British theatre, television, film director and producer based in the United States and United Kingdom. She is known for her work on '' The Catch,'' which she developed and executive produced with Shonda Rhimes, as well a ...
Tom Rosenberg
Tom B. Rosenberg (1947/1948) is an American film producer, co-founder of Beacon Pictures; and founder and chairman of Lakeshore Entertainment. He is a recipient of the 2004 Academy Award for Best Picture for the film '' Million Dollar Baby''.
...
for Lakeshore Entertainment, with
Katherine Heigl
Katherine Marie Heigl ( ; born November 24, 1978) is an American actress and former fashion model. She played Dr. Izzie Stevens on the ABC television medical drama ''Grey's Anatomy'' from 2005 to 2010, a role that brought her recognition and ...
Principal photography
Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production.
Personnel
Besides the main film personnel, such as a ...
began the week of July 12, 2010, in the borough of Ambridge in suburban Beaver County, and continued in six different locations in the town.
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...
's Central Northside neighborhood as well as the recently shuttered UPMC facility in the inner suburb of Braddock, doubled for the book's setting of
Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784.Kittanning.
Reception
Critical response
The film was not initially screened for critics and was widely panned. On
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, it holds a approval rating based on reviews, with an average rating of . The site's consensus reads: "Dull and unfunny, ''One for the Money'' wastes Katherine Heigl's talents on a stunningly generic comic thriller."
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
reported an average score of 22 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B−" on an A+ to F scale.
R. Kurt Osenlund of '' Slant Magazine'' criticized the cartoonish portrayal of New Jersey and its various caricatures, and the dumbed-down gender depiction of its main cast by an all-female production team, saying that, "This isn't girl-power filmmaking, this is cutesy contentment, a production team of gals enforcing their own stereotypes by willfully succumbing to demographic views of sexist Hollywood honchos." Sheri Linden of the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...
'' noted the film's poor scripting of Heigl's character, story progression, and balancing both screwball and black comedy, calling it "an ungainly mix of flat-footed gumshoeing and strained attempts at hilarity, all delivered with an unconvincing Joizy vibe." Kimberley Jones of ''
The Austin Chronicle
''The Austin Chronicle'' is an alternative weekly newspaper published every Thursday in Austin, Texas, United States. The paper is distributed through free news-stands, often at local eateries or coffee houses frequented by its targeted demogr ...
'' said that the film's "glancing relationship with reality" involving its main heroine, story and setting doesn't translate well on the silver screen and is more suited as a made-for-TV movie, concluding with, "If the filmmakers can't be bothered to believe in the real-world implications of its premise, then why ever should we?" Mark Feeney of ''
The Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'' gave credit to the supporting performances of Leonardo Nam and Debbie Reynolds for having "an out-of-left-field quality the rest of the movie lacks."Frank Scheck of ''
The Hollywood Reporter
''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly larg ...
'' believed Heigl and the film's supporting cast were up to the task, but felt they were undone by a script unsure of its genre, saying that it "mostly resembles a failed television pilot, a feeling which is only reinforced by its late-January release and failure to be screened for critics." Jeff Otto from ''
IndieWire
IndieWire (sometimes stylized as indieWIRE or Indiewire) is a film industry and review website that was established in 1996. The site's focus was predominantly independent film, although its coverage has grown to "to include all aspects of Holl ...
'' repeated what Scheck wrote about the genre confusion, saying that it carries elements of a romantic comedy but "Otherwise
he film
He or HE may refer to:
Language
* He (pronoun), an English pronoun
* He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ
* He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets
* He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...
dabbles in thriller territory, sort of an attempt at Elmore Leonard gone '' Jersey Shore''. But it’s not smart enough for that." Feeney felt the film was having a genre battle with itself over "gritty-ethnic inner city vs. girly-girly comic", calling it "chick-lit lmoreLeonard." ''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cu ...
''s Owen Gleiberman added that if said " lmoreLeonard movie was scripted by a bad
Nora Ephron
Nora Ephron ( ; May 19, 1941 – June 26, 2012) was an American journalist, writer, and filmmaker. She is best known for her romantic comedy films and was nominated three times for the Writers Guild of America Award and the Academy Award for ...
imitator."
Many critics derided Heigl for her portrayal of Stephanie Plum. Sam Adams of ''
The A.V. Club
''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...
'' found her miscast as Stephanie because she lacked any spunk or tenacity to make the character tolerable and charming, despite some decent comedic timing, saying "there's a hollowness at the movie’s center, right where Heigl's heart should be." Andrew Barker from ''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' wrote about Heigl having "an almost standoffish lack of conviction" in her performance, and Elizabeth Weitzman of the '' New York Daily News'' described her as being "too movie-star glam, oostiffly prissy, and oolacking in any affection for Stephanie herself." Gleiberman saw Heigl as being unsuitable to emulate the mannerisms of a guidette, saying that she portrays "working-class sexy slovenliness in an overly thought-out way." ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
''s
Peter Travers
Peter Joseph Travers (born ) is an American film critic, journalist, and television presenter. He reviews films for ABC News and previously served as a movie critic for ''People'' and ''Rolling Stone''. Travers also hosts the film interview prog ...
also noted Heigl's miscasting as part of a "cringingly false" film that's devoid of the "Evanovich talent and energy" throughout the direction and screenwriting, concluding that ''One for the Money'' is "so godawful there'll never be another Plum movie to rectify this mess. Evanovich deserved better."
Author
Janet Evanovich
Janet Evanovich (née Schneider; April 22, 1943) is an American writer. She began her career writing short contemporary romance novels under the pen name Steffie Hall, but gained fame authoring a series of contemporary mysteries featuring Step ...
was delighted with how the film turned out and did some joint interviews with Heigl to promote the film. Evanovich stated that she would now envision Heigl as Stephanie when writing the character. ''
Complex
Complex commonly refers to:
* Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe
** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...
'' placed the film at number five on its list of the 25 worst movies of 2012. ''Complex'' staff writer Matt Barone said, " the movie's only offense was how it soils the Garden State's reputation worse than
JWoww
Jennifer Lynn Farley (born February 27, 1986), also known as JWoww, is an American television personality. She first came to prominence as one of the eight main cast members in the MTV reality series ''Jersey Shore'', and is a main cast member ...
, it'd be reprehensible, but not worthy of severe public humiliation. But considering that ''One for the Money'' is also about as funny as a colonic, there's nothing left to do but rip it apart before banishing the flick from our memory banks."
Box office
''One for the Money'' was released on January 27, 2012 and debuted at number 3 behind '' The Grey'' and '' Underworld: Awakening'' with $11.5 million on its opening weekend. The film grossed $26,414,527 domestically and $10,479,194 globally to a total of $36,893,721 worldwide, below its $40 million budget.
The film was promoted using discount ticket offers from
Groupon
Groupon is an American global e-commerce marketplace connecting subscribers with local merchants by offering activities, travel, goods and services in 13 countries. Based in Chicago, Groupon was launched there in November 2008, launching soon af ...
. Exit polling indicated high audience awareness of the promotion, an estimated 11% bought tickets using Groupon, and 93% of that segment indicated they would not have attended the film otherwise.
Box Office Mojo
Box Office Mojo is an American website that tracks box-office revenue in a systematic, algorithmic way. The site was founded in 1998 by Brandon Gray, and was bought in 2008 by IMDb
IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is ...
estimated that the "Groupon bump" amounted to around $1 million.
Awards
Heigl was nominated for a
Golden Raspberry Award
The Golden Raspberry Awards (also known as the Razzies and Razzie Awards) is a parody award show honoring the worst of cinematic under-achievements. Co-founded by UCLA film graduates and film industry veterans John J. B. Wilson and Mo Murphy, ...
for Worst Actress for her performance in the film, but lost the award to
Kristen Stewart
Kristen Jaymes Stewart (born April 9, 1990) is an American actress. The world's highest-paid actress in 2012, she has received various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award and a César Award, in addition to nominations for an Aca ...
for both ''
Snow White and the Huntsman
''Snow White and the Huntsman'' is a 2012 American fantasy film based on the German fairy tale "Snow White" compiled by the Brothers Grimm. The directorial debut of Rupert Sanders, it was written by Evan Daugherty, John Lee Hancock and Hossein ...