Trial and Error

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Trial and Error

PG-13

Released May 30, 1997

1h 38m

Comedy

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Popcornmeter

51%

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35 Reviews

30%

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2,500+ Ratings

Lawyer Charlie (Jeff Daniels) is sent by his boss (Lawrence Pressman) to a small Nevada town to file a continuance request for mail-order con man Benjamin Gibbs (Rip Torn). Charlie's actor friend, Richard (Michael Richards), turns up to throw a surprise bachelor party celebrating Charlie's upcoming marriage to the boss's daughter (Alexandra Wentworth). When Charlie is too hung over to make it to court for the hearing, Richard fills in -- and must continue impersonating him for the whole trial.

Critics Consensus

Trial and Error gets some laughs out of the comedic chemistry between its pleasantly mismatched leads, although the results are still somewhat less than memorable.

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Desson Thomson

Washington Post

Ever since "Something Wild," Daniels has perfected his gift for looking increasingly beaten down. He's a perfect foil for Richards's wilder shenanigans.

Oct 25, 2018

Full Review

Leonard Klady

Variety

"Trial and Error" is a breezy confection for a summer's day that effectively conjures up a smile.

Mar 26, 2009

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Globe and Mail

Rated: 2.5/4

Apr 12, 2002

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Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

The courtroom calamities are supposed to be the strong points of the film, but they never manage to rise above mildly mirthful.

Rated: 3/10

Sep 25, 2020

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Michael Dequina

TheMovieReport.com

Something is surely amiss when the trial antics are the least interesting aspect of a courtroom comedy,

Rated: 2/4

Oct 14, 2005

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Rated: 1/5

Jul 3, 2005

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DJ Darth V

Loved it. Daniels and Richards give great performances.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/06/23

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Audience Member

A decent comedy that was clearly trying to cash in on the success of Micheal Richards from Seinfeld and Jeff Daniels from Dumb and Dumber. It was clearly trying to turn Michael Richards into a movie star because Seinfeld was coming to an end when this came out. Michael Richards basically plays Kramer for 98 minutes but without a live studio audience. A decent premise but it was easy to see why it didn't do well considering it had to go up against The Lost World Jurassic Park.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/26/23

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Audience Member

A lawyer gets drunk when his goofy actor friend throws him a bachelor party and the following day his buddy fills in as the attorney during an important trial. Director Jonathan Lynn is usually reliable at the helm of comedies. but here he seems confused of how to balance the uneven script.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

02/19/23

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Audience Member

nice little film as an incompetent barrister is asked to defend a wife murderer. good chemistry between sellers and attenborough

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/10/23

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Audience Member

Trial And Error is hilarious sporadically from start to finish and makes the comedic pairing between Michael Richards and Jeff Daniels undeniably funny.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/23/23

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Audience Member

Very funny and good characters good movie once it gets going dope scenes

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/15/23

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Jonathan Lynn

Director

Michael Richards

Richard 'Ricky' Rietti

Jeff Daniels

Charles 'Charlie' Tuttle

Charlize Theron

Billy Tyler

Jessica Steen

Elizabeth Gardner

Austin Pendleton

Judge Paul Z. Graff

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Synopsis

Lawyer Charlie (Jeff Daniels) is sent by his boss (Lawrence Pressman) to a small Nevada town to file a continuance request for mail-order con man Benjamin Gibbs (Rip Torn). Charlie's actor friend, Richard (Michael Richards), turns up to throw a surprise bachelor party celebrating Charlie's upcoming marriage to the boss's daughter (Alexandra Wentworth). When Charlie is too hung over to make it to court for the hearing, Richard fills in -- and must continue impersonating him for the whole trial.

Director: Jonathan Lynn
Producer: Jonathan Lynn, Gary Ross
Screenwriter: Sara Bernstein, Gregory Bernstein, Cliff Gardner
Distributor: New Line Cinema
Production Co: New Line Cinema
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): May 30, 1997, Original
Release Date (DVD): Nov 23, 1999
Box Office (Gross USA): $13.6M
Runtime: 1h 38m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby Digital, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: 35mm, Scope (2.35:1)