See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989)

The premise is one that could be completely butchered if handled the wrong way, but fortunately, Pryor and Wilder have good comedic timing and chemistry together and even add some welcome sensitivity and humanity to their respective characters (see their bench convos). Unfortunately, not every scene lands, and the dud gags get more frequent as time goes on (gotta love that casual sexism..). The plot is pretty poorly written too, especially in the gong show of a final showdown and resolve.

4

Brewster’s Millions (1985)

You’d think the premise would be ripe for comedic pickin’ but it’s mostly just Brewster exuding stress and hiring people for absurd salaries, and the jokes thrown in on top of that are next to none (Candy’s disappointingly underutilized). Had the potential to say something thoughtful about money, but didn’t bother with that either, instead putting energy towards developing a lifeless romance. Pryor has a certain charismatic presence as the lead but it’s not enough to make an engaging comedy.

3