''Get Hard'' is a 2015 American

crime comedy film Crime film is a film belonging to the crime fiction genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and fiction. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine with many other genres, such as drama or gangster film, but als ...

directed by Etan Cohen (in his directorial debut) and written by Cohen, Jay Martel, and Ian Roberts. The film stars

Will Ferrell John William Ferrell (; born July 16, 1967) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. He is known for his leading man roles in comedy films and for his work as a television producer. Ferrell received various accolades, including ...

and

Kevin Hart Kevin Darnell Hart (born July 6, 1979) is an American comedian and actor. The accolades he has received include the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor and nominations for two Grammy Awards and four Primetime Emmy Awards. After winning se ...

, with Tip "T.I." Harris,

Alison Brie Alison Brie Schermerhorn (born December 29, 1982) is an American actress, writer, and producer. She earned recognition for playing Trudy Campbell in the drama series ''Mad Men'' (2007–2015), and had her Breakthrough role, breakthrough starring ...

, and Craig T. Nelson in supporting roles. The film focuses on James King (Ferrell), a wealthy investment bank manager who is framed for a crime he did not commit, and asks the man who washes his car, Darnell Lewis (Hart) to help him prepare for prison. ''Get Hard'' premiered at the

South by Southwest South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has conti ...

event on March 16, 2015, and was released in the United States on March 27. The film received generally negative reviews, but was a commercial success, grossing $111.8 million worldwide against a $40–44 million production budget.

Plot

James King is a wealthy

hedge fund A hedge fund is a Pooling (resource management), pooled investment fund that holds Market liquidity, liquid assets and that makes use of complex trader (finance), trading and risk management techniques to aim to improve investment performance and ...

manager at Barrow Funds, engaged to Alissa, the daughter of his boss Martin Barrow. During an engagement party for James and Alissa, the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

arrive and arrest James for

fraud In law, fraud is intent (law), intentional deception to deprive a victim of a legal right or to gain from a victim unlawfully or unfairly. Fraud can violate Civil law (common law), civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrato ...

and

embezzlement Embezzlement (from Anglo-Norman, from Old French ''besillier'' ("to torment, etc."), of unknown origin) is a type of financial crime, usually involving theft of money from a business or employer. It often involves a trusted individual taking ...

. James' lawyer, Peter Penny, urges him to plead guilty for a likely shorter sentence, but James refuses and believes that he will be exonerated. However, James is found guilty and is sentenced to the maximum 10 years in

San Quentin State Prison San Quentin Rehabilitation Center (SQ), formerly known as San Quentin State Prison, is a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation state prison for men, located north of San Francisco in the unincorporated area, unincorporated place ...

, with the judge allowing him 30 days to get his affairs in order. On top of this, Alissa leaves James after he suggests the two flee the country together. Over time, James has come to know Darnell Lewis, who operates a small car wash business in the parking lot used by James. Shortly after his arrest, James encounters Darnell and, assuming he has been incarcerated before because he is Black, begs him for help, requesting to be "toughened up". Darnell, who in actuality has never been to prison and has little experience in fighting, agrees, on the condition James pays him $30,000; Darnell sees it as an opportunity for him and his wife Rita to finally put their daughter Makayla in a better school, away from the bad neighborhood they live in. Darnell's training, which includes pepper-spraying James, re-modelling his house to resemble a maximum security prison and creating multiple scenarios in which he must defend himself, all fail miserably. During the training, James gets in touch with Martin to tell him about his search for help. Martin, the actual crook, believes James is onto him and orders a hitman named Gayle to monitor him. With James' training seemingly going nowhere, Darnell suggests that James should prepare in other ways for prison, and takes him to a gay hookup spot to teach James how to perform oral sex in prison. James can't go through with it and instead tells Darnell that he will keep going and do whatever it takes in order to "get hard". James soon after begins to work out harder and faster, makes shivs, learns "keistering" (smuggling

contraband Contraband (from Medieval French ''contrebande'' "smuggling") is any item that, relating to its nature, is illegal to be possessed or sold. It comprises goods that by their nature are considered too dangerous or offensive in the eyes of the leg ...

in the

anus In mammals, invertebrates and most fish, the anus (: anuses or ani; from Latin, 'ring' or 'circle') is the external body orifice at the ''exit'' end of the digestive tract (bowel), i.e. the opposite end from the mouth. Its function is to facil ...

), and seems to be making progress. Darnell simulates a prison riot with help from James' domestic staff. In the chaos, James gets a shiv stuck in his head, after which, Darnell brings James to his home for Rita to treat it. James has dinner with Darnell's family and listens to the tale of how he ended up in prison, which is actually just a retelling of the movie ''

Boyz n the Hood ''Boyz n the Hood'' is a 1991 American coming-of-age hood crime drama film written and directed by John Singleton in his feature directorial debut. It stars Cuba Gooding Jr., Ice Cube (in his film debut), Morris Chestnut, and Laurence Fis ...

''. James and Darnell resolve for James to join a local gang called the Crenshaw Kings to gain protection in prison. However, Darnell's cousin and gang leader Russell rebuffs James and redirects him to the Alliance of Whites gang. James is unable to portray a convincing racist, leading the gang to think he is a cop; they threaten to attack James, but Darnell rescues him by bursting in with a flamethrower. Eventually, Darnell and James finally deduce that Martin framed James. They sneak into his office and find the embezzlement records on Martin's computer. Before they can expose him, Gayle finds them and takes back the computer, informing James that Darnell is not who he thinks he is and has never been in prison. Dejected and upset that Darnell lied to him, James returns to the Crenshaw Kings on his own, asking to join. They accept him as one of their own and order him to kill someone as his initiation. Before he can do so, Darnell arrives in time to convince James to expose Martin. The two sneak onto Martin's yacht to retrieve the computer, only to come across Gayle and his men. James unleashes a series of

capoeira Capoeira () is an Afro-Brazilian martial art and game that includes elements of dance, acrobatics, capoeira music, music, and spirituality. It likely originated from enslaved Mbundu people, of the Kingdom of Ndongo, in present-day Angola. The ...

moves on them before Martin and Alissa arrive, both confessing to the fraud and embezzlement, a scheme that also included Peter. They try to convince James to run away with them, but he turns them down and heads to a life raft with Darnell. When Gayle shoots the life raft, James pulls out a gun he had "keistered" and aims it at Gayle. U.S. Marshals suddenly appear, summoned by the ankle monitor that James triggered, having trespassed the county line. Martin's computer provides the evidence needed to clear James. Martin, Gayle, Alissa, and the henchmen are all arrested and James is exonerated. However, he is still sentenced to six months in prison for holding an unlicensed gun, but thanks to Darnell's training, James is fully prepared for his stint in prison, unlike Martin, who is quickly attacked by inmates when his San Quentin sentence with Peter begins. James spends his sentence helping the FBI retrieve all the assets that Martin stole while guiding Darnell's investments so that he and Rita are able to open their own carwash. As Darnell drives James home after his release, James announces his intent to celebrate his freedom with a ''

Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

'' and a forty, which he now considers a perfect Sunday.

Cast

as James King, a hedge fund manager who is framed for embezzlement *

as Darnell Lewis, a car wash attendant who helps James prepare for prison, despite never being in prison. * Craig T. Nelson as Martin Barrow, the head of Barrow Funds and father of Alissa who frames James for embezzlement *

as Alissa Barrow, the gold-digging fiancée of James and daughter of Martin Barrow * Edwina Findley as Rita Lewis, Darnell's wife * Tip "T.I." Harris as Russell, Darnell's cousin who is the leader of the Crenshaw Kings * Ariana Neal as Makayla Lewis, Darnell and Rita's daughter * Erick Chavarria as Cecelio, James' gardener * Katia Gomez as Rosa, James' maid * Greg Germann as Peter Penny, a lawyer associated with James and Martin *

Paul Ben-Victor Paul Ben-Victor (born ) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Greek mobster Spiros "Vondas" Vondopoulos on the HBO drama series ''The Wire'', Alan Gray in '' Entourage'' (2005–2008), and Ray in '' Body Parts'' (1991). Early lif ...

as Gayle, Martin's hired help *

John Mayer John Clayton Mayer ( ; born October 16, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, but he left for Atlanta in 1997 with fellow guitarist Clay Cook, with whom he formed the short-liv ...

as himself, he performs at James and Alissa's engagement party and later appears on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by actor and comedian Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It i ...

'' where he talks about James and sings a sample from his ballad about him * Jon Eyez as Big Mike * Nito Larioza as Jaoa *

Dan Bakkedahl Dan Bakkedahl (born November 18, 1969) is an American actor and improvisational comedian. He is best known for starring as Tim Hughes on the CBS sitcom ''Life in Pieces'', as Congressman Roger Furlong on the HBO series ''Veep'', and as Steve Nuge ...

as Leo *

Ron Funches Ronald Kyle Funches (born March 12, 1983) is an American comedian and actor. Born in California, Funches spent his early life in Chicago before relocating to Salem, Oregon, as a teenager. He began his comedy career in Portland, Oregon, at age 23. ...

as Jojo, a member of the Crenshaw Kings * Elliot Grey as Judge V. Carlyle, the judge that presides over James' trial * Matt Walsh as Bathroom Stall Man * T. J. Jagodowski as Chris * Dominique Perry as Shonda *

Jimmy Fallon James Thomas Fallon (born September 19, 1974) is an Americans, American comedian, television host, actor, singer, writer, and producer. Best known for his work in television, Fallon's breakthrough came during his tenure as a cast member on the ...

as himself (uncredited), he interviews John Mayer about being present during James' arrest

Production

On December 7, 2012, it was announced that

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

was in talks to acquire the film written by Ian Roberts and Jay Martel, while

Adam McKay Adam McKay (born April 17, 1968) is an American screenwriter, producer, and director. McKay began his career as a head writer for the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') from 1995 to 2001. After leaving ''SNL'', McKay co-w ...

and

's Gary Sanchez Productions would produce. On September 17, 2013 Etan Cohen was set to direct. On February 24, 2014, Warner Bros. set the film for a March 27, 2015 release. On December 7, 2012,

and

were attached to starring roles. On February 26, 2014, it was announced Craig T. Nelson had joined the cast to play Martin Barrow, the founder of Barrow Funds (Ferrell's character's boss) and also the father of Ferrell's character's fiancée. On March 17, 2014

signed on to star, playing the fiancée of Ferrell's character. On March 21, 2014, Edwina Findley joined the cast to play Rita Hudson, wife to Hart's character. On March 24, 2014

joined the cast to play Rick, Ferrell's hated enemy at their office. On March 25, 2014,

T.I. Clifford Joseph Harris Jr. (born September 25, 1980), known professionally as T.I. or Tip, is an American rapper and singer raised in Atlanta, Georgia. Harris is credited as a pioneer of the hip hop subgenre trap music, along with fellow Georgi ...

joined the cast, playing a character named Russell, Hart's character's streetwise cousin.

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 the ...

began on March 17, 2014, in

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, and ended on May 14, 2014. The film was somewhat controversial with some perceiving that it was playing into race-related stereotypes. During some scenes Cohen asked Hart's opinion on how some jokes would be perceived by African American audiences and made some changes accordingly. Warner Bros. and Cohen also performed extensive testing to make sure the humor came across well.

Music

On October 30, 2014,

Christophe Beck Jean-Christophe Beck (born in 1968) is a Canadian television and film score composer. He is best known for his collaborations with Disney and its subsidiaries, which include composing the soundtracks of '' The Muppets'' (2011) and '' Muppets Mos ...

was hired to compose the music for the film.

Release

The film was released by

on March 27, 2015.

Reception

Box office

''Get Hard'' grossed $90.4 million in the United States and Canada, and $21.3 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $111.7 million against a budget of $40 million. (Other reports put the budget at $44 million. The film also received $12.3 million in tax incentives for filming in Louisiana.) In its opening weekend, the film grossed $33.8 million, coming in second place at the box office behind ''

Home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or more human occupants, and sometimes various companion animals. Homes provide sheltered spaces, for instance rooms, where domestic activity can be p ...

'' ($52.1 million). It was Ferrell's third-highest opening for a live-action film, behind '' Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby'' ($47 million) and ''

The Other Guys ''The Other Guys'' is a 2010 American buddy cop action comedy film directed by Adam McKay, who co-wrote it with Chris Henchy. It stars Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg with Eva Mendes, Michael Keaton, Steve Coogan, Ray Stevenson, Samu ...

'' ($35.5 million), and was passed the following December by '' Daddy's Home'' ($38.7 million).

Critical response

''Get Hard'' has received generally negative reviews, with many critics citing the film's overuse of racial jokes. On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, 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 ...

, the film has an approval rating of 28% based on 186 reviews, with an average rating of 4.40/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "A waste of two fine funnymen, ''Get Hard'' settles for tired and offensive gags instead of tapping into its premise's boundary-pushing potential." On

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

the film has a

weighted average The weighted arithmetic mean is similar to an ordinary arithmetic mean (the most common type of average), except that instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others. The ...

score of 34 out of 100, based on reviews from 43 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews.

CinemaScore CinemaScore is an American market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts from the data. Background Ed Mintz, who ...

polls conducted during the opening weekend recorded that audiences gave ''Get Hard'' an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale.

Richard Corliss Richard Nelson Corliss (March 6, 1944 – April 23, 2015) was an American film critic and magazine editor for ''Time''. He focused on movies, with occasional articles on other subjects. He was the former editor-in-chief of ''Film Comment ...

of ''

Time magazine ''Time'' (stylized in all caps as ''TIME'') is an American news magazine based in New York City. It was published weekly for nearly a century. Starting in March 2020, it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York Cit ...

'' wrote: "Laughter trumps political fairness, and ''Get Hard'' made me laugh at, and with, situations I hadn’t thought could tickle me. The movie has a warm heart beating under its seemingly scabrous shell." The film was criticized for its gay panic jokes and

homophobia Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who identify or are perceived as being lesbian, Gay men, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred, or ant ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Get Hard 2015 films 2010s buddy comedy films 2015 crime comedy films American buddy comedy films American crime comedy films American LGBTQ-related films American prison comedy films African-American films Dune Entertainment films Films about racism in the United States Films about rape in the United States Films directed by Etan Cohen Films produced by Adam McKay Films produced by Will Ferrell Films scored by Christophe Beck Films set in prison Films shot in New Orleans Gary Sanchez Productions films Films with screenplays by Adam McKay Films with screenplays by Etan Cohen Race-related controversies in film LGBTQ-related controversies in film Warner Bros. films 2015 directorial debut films Hood comedy films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films 2015 LGBTQ-related films LGBTQ-related crime comedy films English-language crime comedy films English-language buddy comedy films