Ruthless People

"Sam Stone's wife has just been kidnapped... And he doesn't want her back!"

1986 1h 34m EN

👍

6.6

SOLID

★6.6TMDB · 467

Comedy

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Sam Stone hates his wife Barbara so much that he wants her dead. He's ecstatic when she's taken by a duo of kidnappers who want $500,000 ransom in exchange for her life. Fully intending to ignore every one of the kidnappers' demands in the hopes that they do him a favor and murder her for him, the two confused kidnappers have to figure out how they're going get their money, and what they're going to do with the overbearing Barbara.

“Sam Stone's wife has just been kidnapped... And he doesn't want her back!”

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Cast

Danny DeVito
Sam Stone
Bette Midler
Barbara Stone
Judge Reinhold
Ken Kessler
Helen Slater
Sandy Kessler
Anita Morris
Carol Dodsworth
Bill Pullman
Earl James Mott
William G. Schilling
Chief Henry Benton
Art Evans
Lt. Bender

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: David Zucker
Writers: Dale Launer
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 6.5× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

40 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by David Zucker, shot by Jan de Bont. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Michel Colombier. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Gib Jaffe shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Danny DeVito and Bette Midler and Judge Reinhold carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Sam Stone's wife has just been kidnapped... And he doesn't want her back!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0091877 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

David Zucker directs. Jan de Bont behind the camera. Michel Colombier scores. Gib Jaffe cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Made its money back 6.5× over at the box office.
240 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Directed by David Zucker, shot by Jan de Bont. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Michel Colombier. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Gib Jaffe shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Danny DeVito and Bette Midler and Judge Reinhold carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Sam Stone's wife has just been kidnapped... And he doesn't want her back!".
8IMDB entry: tt0091877 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.