Das Geld liegt auf der Straße (1977)

Das Geld liegt auf der Straße: Directed by Ted Kotcheff. With George Segal, Jane Fonda, Ed McMahon, Dick Gautier. When an upwardly mobile couple find themselves unemployed and in debt, they turn to armed robbery in desperation.

“Consistently funny spoof of Americau0026#39;s caste system from bottom to top. The Harpers (Fonda u0026amp;Segal) are yuppies trying to hang on to middle-class status after Dick is fired from well-paying aerospace job. Increasingly desperate as creditors close in, they eventually turn to robbery, a clumsy Bonny and Clyde with country club credentials. Their early lame stickup efforts are particularly humorous. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThereu0026#39;s no mistaking the subtext that takes a shot at about every rung on our economic ladder, from minority welfare cheaters to middle-class status seekers to upper-class hypocrisy. And throw in a shot at televangelist hucksters guarding their own loot. A couple points are easily overlooked. Note how Janeu0026#39;s wealthy dad refuses to help, lecturing them on the virtues of rugged individualism. Tellingly, this is the one scene without a humorous overlay. Note also that Dicku0026#39;s thanks for helping get a man on the moon is to get fired. Thus, itu0026#39;s declining profits, the logic of capitalist efficiency, that prevails over all else. Essentially, what storybook Dick and Jane find out is what itu0026#39;s like to survive on the margins, and since their tastes are elevated, itu0026#39;s an inflated margin.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eDonu0026#39;t get me wrong. Thanks to both an excellent script and ace performances,the movie manages its many serious points in consistently humorous fashion. After all, we never expect Dick to actually use his stickup gun. Heu0026#39;s too humorously inept, though he does get more skilled as time goes on. And catch how the now destitute Dick and Jane live in a rambling home with a bombed-out lawn and a pit for a pool. Now what will the neighbors say. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eBig kudos to Segal who handles his difficult role in expert fashion, and also to Fonda who makes a perfect bickering soul mate and for being maybe the first woman to take a discreet leak on screen. McMahon too shines as the slick company president who smiles even while stabbing a guyu0026#39;s back. As an actor, he certainly proves heu0026#39;s more than Johnnyu0026#39;s affable TV sidekick.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAnyway, in my little book, the 90-minutes succeeds on a number of levels, making it both really watchable and still relevant.”