User Reviews

I found this movie to be quite funny with an original story line. The story is about a habitual criminal who repeatedly comes before the same judge to be sentenced. He devises a method of revenge upon this judge whereupon his release from prison, he frames the judge's son on a crime which sends the judge's son to prison. The habitual criminal then commits a crime to be his cell mate and there the fun begins.

This is obviously a dark-humored comedy and it had me laughing more than I had anticipated. It was given only a 5 star by IMDb users so I did not expect much but it was quite good. I am surprised it did not get that much notoriety in the theaters. In fact, I never heard of this film at all. It's amazing that crappy comedy movies like Wild Hogs and I Think I Love My Wife get all the attention while really funny movie like this get passed by. But what can you do since there really is no star power in this movie. You will recognize actors and actresses since many of them have appeared in many films as supporting characters. It's just that they don't have the name recognition.

The only weakness I found in this movies was the crime by with which the judge's son was framed. The writers should have thought of a more plausible reason for his incarceration. However, after some thought, I figure this is comedy and the whole movie is a stretch of the imagination so I am overlooking this weakness.

I am not saying, however, that this is a great comedy but it was good and it had me laughing pretty much throughout the movie and in my opinion, that warrants a 7. If you like Van Wilder, Sorority Boys, and Harold and Kumar Goes to White Castle type of movies, then you will like this as well.

Putting this into my DVD player i didn't expect more than a few chuckles but i found myself laughing hysterically rather frequently. While i don't think every joke landed quite as well as Odenkirk would have wanted, the overall product was rather funny. Chi McBride has by far the funniest character in the film since he does fall in love with one of my personal favorites, Will Arnett. Dax Shepherd was surprisingly standable considering i'm really not a fan of his at all. Dylan Baker's "comment in the butt hole" joke i don't think quite made it... or maybe that was the point, so i didn't care much for him. Koechner was as funny as usual and all the stupid quirks of this movie made me laugh. Deep? No. Funny? Yes. What's funnier than a rich inmate struggling with a bunch of people who want to kill him or try to have dirty sex with him? That's funny.

... but WHY do I feel guilty? Maybe it is because such terrible things go on behind bars - rape, gangs that dish out death based on race, bad food, corrupt guards, etc. and all of that is treated comically in this film. BUT, really nothing that you would expect given the set up of the film actually happens to the degree that it could, and in the end it turns out to have some very clever twists. It is just not all stupidity and it is very non-violent considering what could happen.

The setup is that a career non-violent criminal, John Lyshitski (Dax Shepard) is constantly getting caught and sent to prison by Judge Nelson Biedermann. But Lyshitski blames all of his incarcerations on the judge, not on his own bad choices, and he spends so much time in prison he knows everybody by name. So John decides to carry out a plan of revenge on the judge, except the judge dies right before he gets out of jail. So John changes his plan to avenge himself on the dead judge's son, Nelson Biedermann IV, by tampering with his inhaler and making him temporarily high. In this state Ned trashes a store and attacks the store owners, all caught on the store security camera. Did I mention that Ned IV is an insufferable preppy jerk? So Ned demands that the Biedermann foundation help get him out, BUT the foundation decides they would like to be rid of this stupid jerk and defend him themselves and throw the case. Ned goes to prison for 3-5 years.

Meanwhile, John is not feeling the glee he thought he would at Ned going to prison. After all, he figures, he won't be there to see Ned get what is certainly going to be coming to a soft preppy rich kid with no street smarts. So this time, John gets caught on purpose, gets sent to prison for 3-5 just like Ned, and manages his prison connections so he is Ned's cellmate. At first things go like you think they would, but then a twist of fate for both Ned and John change things in a way that was inconceivable to John when he started this whole thing. From there you will have to watch yourself and find out what happens. If you have a distaste for violence, don't worry, this is not Shawshank Redemption on any possible level.

Oh, and kudos to Chi McBride who becomes the unlikely means for Ned to give the foundation that dumped him their comeuppance. This film is probably a 6.5 as a comedy, but I rounded it up to 7 for originality, especially during the last half.

I'm a fan of Bob Odenkirk's previous work (Run Ronnie Run & The Mr. Show) and I was excited to hear of this film knowing that it also started Arnett and Shepard.

And although Odenkirk's direction is good, it's the comedy duo of Arnett and Shepard are really make this film worth watching. They; together with McBride, have a undisputable chemistry that seems to work.

Apart from the odd scene that seems to go on for too long (eg: some of the scenes with Arnett and McBride, although strengthening an important plot point, seem to go on for much to long.) and the ending (I won't give it away, but it fell kind of flat) this is a stupidly funny film that's easy to watch and will have you laughing in the first five mins.

It's worth watching if only for the dynamic between Arnett and Shepard.

I love comedies, and I like prison movies/shows whether serious or action or comedies, and am a freak Arrested Development fan. Will Arnett's character G.O.B. is one of the best in TV sitcom history. I was hoping he would play a similar type of character in this movie and he did, but the movie was really not good. I even went in with low "stupid comedy" expectations which usually works and allows me to have a good time no matter how stupid the "stupid comedy" is, but even that could not save the movie for me. Dax Sheppard is really pretty dry, and the turns in the plots are weak. Bob O. let me down, too. He was surprisingly the most unfunny of everyone. I was laughing a little early on, but by the halfway point i was looking at my watch every 5 minutes. I know now why critics weren't allowed to see it before today's date. Most of the funny scenes were in the previews. Anyways, just my 2 cents...

very funny. if you're a fan of arrested development, you'll enjoy it even more(im a big fan of will arnett). i went to see it and me and my girl were the only ones in the theater. i mean, its awesome when its like that, but thats a shame. this is a good movie that had a good trailer. its okay that this movie has some of the things that you'd expect to see in a prison movie because they take those expectations and produce much better comedy. i hope this movie will turn out to be a success.arnett is great in this, chi mcbride is great, and so is dax sheppard. David koechner also does a great job. all in all, its just a funny movie that should be viewed. C'MON!

I work at a theater, so when a new movie comes out, I get to preview it, so I picked Lets Go to Prison over James Bond, simply because I'm not a Bond-type person.

I went into this movie hoping to laugh until my side hurt...not the case. The trailer that is online is more funny than the movie itself. Most of the jokes were the typical 'Prison' jokes (don't drop the soap, stuff like that), which really gets old after a awhile.

The plot was paper thin, and often just boring, only 3 times did I actually witness "funny" parts, maybe it's just my sense of humor though. The acting was okay, nothing really fantastic.

So, in conclusion, STAY AWAY FROM THIS MOVIE! Save your 6 - 10 bucks or go see something better. I give it a 2, only because I got to see it for free.

I thought it would be a good movie when I watched the clips on the internet. But I was very wrong. They attempted to make the movie serious and funny it didn't work. I only heard people laugh out loud at the movie a couple of times. It was like they worked to write a good movie at the first part of the movie and then said lets just put something in to get it over. I wanted to see the movie because it was filmed at the old Joliet prison, but you would't know it from the movie. Some of the clips that were funny on the internet were not in the movie. I don't think that inmates in prison (captive audience) would even laugh at this movie.

Hilarious offbeat comedy. I say "offbeat" since the main love interest is a large black man named Barry, who will woo you like you've never been woo-ed before. This is not your normal Hollywood comedy, it's got more of an "Arrested Development" feel - a funny script and Bob Odenkirk's direction (and supporting player role) make this work. Basically, this film takes every men's prison cliché and pushes it ten times further. If you've ever wanted to just stay in and drink toilet wine with a loved one, then this film should resonate with you. This is destined to end up a cult movie since it's not exactly mainstream humor, but if you're a fan of Odenkirk and David Cross's "Mr. Show," you'll find a lot here to enjoy - and you'll also find the very tall Brian Posner standing in a crowd scene near the end.

Absolutely, positively not my thing. I hate dumb, lowest common denominator comedies. But how does one not watch two of my favorite actors, Bob Odenkirk and Will Arnett?

An ex-con, Lyshitski (Dax Shepherd) wants to take revenge on the Judge who continually put him away, and is disappointed to find out he's dead. So he decides to make sure the Judge's son Biederman (Arnett) goes to prison and that he bunks with him. He's so well-known at the prison he knows who he can bribe to get just the cell he wants. He then unleashes a reign of terror on Biederman, with surprising consequences.

Some of this was absolutely hysterical, some of it was gross, but the cast is so talented - Shephard, Arnett, Chi McBride, Odenkirk in another lousy lawyer role - some very funny people.

The second-grader pen pal reading aloud Biederman's letter to his class was priceless.

One thing - the color on the print I watched was very strange - everyone looked as if they had very deep blue or green eyes.

As I said, not my thing - but I did laugh.

Hilarious, just simply hilarious. Let's go to prison gives out the funny about prison life. Even though prison life is a very serious manner, just watching this movie will leave you in stitches. Here you have a well-respected lawyer who comes from a family of arbiters of the law. On the other side, there's a born trouble-maker who dealt with his father in the past, when he died, he went for his son. So when this gallant troublemaker gets to be his bunkmate in prison. There he meets some characters who gives him some tips on who to trust and who to avoid. One of the prisoners who happens to be called the "Barry White" of the cell-block, takes high interest in him. The prison love can make you lose you dignity, but the toilet wine tops it all. So instead of having the biggest riot that could cause a breakout, they create a death that makes a breakout. Now why would a high class man would like Tecnotronic's "Move This"? Guess every guy's got his own vices. This movie is a lot of fun, and a lot of laughs to go by. Watch this! 3 out of 5 stars.

It's the most standard comedy you'll ever see, made me laugh a few times and that was it literally nothing else to say.

I saw this movie on Netflix and knew the actors involved so thought I'd give it a go. I had 0 expectations going into this and I thought it was pretty funny overall.

Plot is obviously nothing to write home about, but I thought a lot of the humour was quite subtle but effective. One or 2 scenes had me absolutely dying with laughter. It's a typical comedy in all honesty, it's not something you will watch and go "that was incredible" but it's something you will get you a few laughs and just escape for an hour and a half.

Enjoy comedy films, but haven't seen this? Just give it a go!

O, where do I begin? I don't know who reads this stuff, but I'd like to address this directly to Bob.

I remember your set on The A-List when Comedy Central was just starting out. I bought the illegal Bob Odenkirk Collection, a VHS tape of every TV appearance you've ever made- Just Shoot Me, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Seinfeld...etc.

I know every Me. Show sketch by heart, and have read every article, bought every DVD, seen every special, joined your website, watched every movie, and BELIEVED you.

When you said in LIVE FRON NEW YORK that Rober Smigel single-handedly saved sketch in this country, when you said that RUN, RONNIE, RUN was not the movie you meant to produce, and when you said that I would enjoy LET'S GO TO PRISON.

I believed you.

I respect comedic artists doing movies for money. Steve Martin seems to be funding his novels and plays with his movies, and there's never any doubt that I will not go to see those movies.

You have done your true fans a great disservice. I wanted to believe you. I was skeptical, but I wanted to believe you. You hyped this movie on your website, so I saw it on opening night with some friends.

You know what this movie is. I wanted to believe that Lennon and Garant didn't write another HERBIE or NANNY...I wanted to believe that Arnett and Shepherd were going to get their cinematic/comedic chance. I wanted to believe YOU.

You must not trick your fans into seeing this trash. There are people out here who want to create great comedy, and many of us look to you for leadership.

Please do not let us down.

The cast you COULD assemble, the stories you COULD write...do you realize the marketing power you have on DVD? Put out some GREAT comedy and IT WILL SELL! We're all dying for it. Produce cheap (like you tout) and get it out here! You are an icon and have the ability to launch careers...don't waste this! Please don't lie to me anymore. Do what you need for money...but don't swindle us fans anymore in that pursuit.

And just in case you either don't understand, or do not agree with me: YOU ARE BETTER THAN THIS.

There are 'chick flicks' and there are 'guy flicks' and LET'S GO TO PRISON definitely falls into the latter category. Adapted from a novel 'You Are Going to Prison' by Jim Hogshire by screenwriters Ben Garant, Thomas Lennon and Michael Patrick Jann and directed by Bob Odenkirk, this light film seems to be a 'boys night out' venture and should be viewed with a heavy dose of good humor.

John Lyshitski (a hunky and very funny Dax Shepard) has a rotten childhood, having been caught in funky 'crimes' always facing the courtroom of on Judge Biederman (David Darlow) who consistently sentences him to time in reform school then prison. After multiple terms behind bars Lyshitski seeks revenge on the judge only to discover the judge has died! BUT the judge left a cocky son as heir - Nelson Biederman IV (Will Arnett) - and Lyshitski stalks him and ultimately is able to get Nelson locked up in prison, and then manages to get himself locked up simultaneously to be Nelson's cell mate. The point of the caper is to put Nelson through the cruel events of prison life, but as the two live in the same cell, Lyshitski's best ideas for revenge and backfire, leaving the once terrified Nelson in the hands of a Black gang leader Barry (Chi McBride) with whom Nelson ultimately bonds and thwarts all the plans for revenge that Lyshitski penned. The ending is a funny twist of events that is good for a chuckle as well as lesson about guy bonding.

The film is no great shakes of a movie, but made on an obviously low budget it does benefit from the antics of the three excellent leads and the result is a 'different kind of prison movie' that is light, silly, and entertaining. Grady Harp

This movie captures and colorizes the satiric humor of prison and otherwise predictable jail humor in a way that is completely and thankfully watchable.

The story centers around three characters - Will Arnett is stuck in the center, utilizing his patentable 'that guys an a-hole but I'd still have a beer with him' persona and has it very well countered by two great actors whose subtle humor and physical timing really cuts out a sympathetic and f'n hilarious story that you don't want to end when it does. Which is saying a lot for this genre.

Of course there are ridiculous and improbable twists that you forgive because they are so damn fun. Nice touch on the epilogue and the ending credits.

It's good. It's better than good. It's not an art movie - it's not a fart movie - it's not even a combination. But if you've ever gone out of your way to watch Curb Your Enthusiasm, Arrested Development or Reno 911 you'll really enjoy it.

Beeyatch.

Black comedy pits career criminal Shepard against innocent doofus Arnett, whom Shepard manages to railroad into prison on false charges. Shepard is out to kill Arnett, whose dad, a judge, put Shepard behind bars on several occasions. But like Inspectore Clouseau from "The Pink Panther," Arnett turns out to be harder to kill than Shepoard planned on. Some really funny and very R-rated bits enliven the proceedings, many of them having to do with acid-filled syringes. Arnett and Shepard play their roles with a very dry sense of humor. Chi McBridge is along for the ride as a fellow prisoner in love with Arnett. Not for the faint of heart, children or chicks. And for those who are patient, wait until you get to the very unexpected and delightful ending.

It was sort of funny at some parts, but many of the main parts could have been expressed in a better, more exciting or less crummy way. I suggest that if you want to see this movie, wait until it comes out in the dollar theatre or a the DVD rental place so you don't waste as much money to see it. I thought that personally, it had two good, worth your money parts, but the rest was kind of washed out. Also, I thought that some of the humor was very, very overdrawn and overused. Who really wants to see a movie with basically no plot? If you do, then this movie is right for you. If you value your time, or don't want your eyes to bleed, then see something else.