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Bait

Play trailer Poster for Bait R 2000 1h 59m Action Comedy Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
26% Tomatometer 81 Reviews 41% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings
Landing in jail for a petty theft crime, Alvin finds himself sharing a cell with John Jaster, the incarcerated half of the pair of high-tech thieves responsible for the missing gold. His partner, Bristol, is still at large. Alvin wants only to get out of prison and start fresh with his girlfriend, Lisa, and when the Feds, led by U.S. Treasury investigator Clenteen, set him loose on a sketchy deal, he thinks his luck has changed. Alvin has his freedom and the Feds have found their bait.
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Bait

Bait

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Critics Consensus

Even though Jamie Foxx shines in Bait, the movie suffers from music video roots and a formulaic script that strains credibility.

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Critics Reviews

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Jonathan Foreman New York Post Thanks to Antoine Fuqua's ... feverish and self-indulgent MTV-inspired direction, with its desperate overreliance on close-ups, you just can't tell what's going on. Jan 1, 2000 Full Review Michael Wilmington Chicago Tribune This film wastes a lot of good actors. Jan 1, 2000 Full Review Eleanor Ringel Cater Atlanta Journal-Constitution Despite its genre trappings, Bait is an entertaining and occasionally clever picture with a crackling peformance by Jamie Foxx. Jan 1, 2000 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Rated: C- Mar 19, 2013 Full Review Cole Smithey ColeSmithey.com Well paced, but weak on story, character, and variety, "Bait" is an underwhelming effort from director Anton Fuqua. Rated: C- May 18, 2009 Full Review Mark Halverson Sacramento News & Review Rated: 2/5 Aug 7, 2008 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Chris K It is well worth anyone viewing it. I’ve seen it about three times since it came out. Jamie Foxx is hilarious, and then you have Mike Epps, and the two dudes from the Green Mile lol. I don’t know what people want out of every movie they see. But I’ll bet that they generally leave poor reviews to make themselves look good. This movie was well worth the $1.37 on Amazon Prime that it cost to rent. I mean, really… For that, what do you have to lose? Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/30/25 Full Review Sergio C Jamie fox was funny but the plot is plain idiotic but the government spending and stupidity seems legit.. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 10/30/22 Full Review georgan g This movie is mostly thriller with comedy throw in here & there. As always, Jamie Fox is good. Interesting plot. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Entertaining but they spent 43 million in tech to get back 42 million lol Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/06/23 Full Review Audience Member The DVD had been sitting on a shelf for 7 years. I decided to give it a try and I objectively found it very entertaining. There are worse movies than "Bait" out there !!! Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/25/23 Full Review Audience Member Screenplay taken from the screenplay generator. Yawn. Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 01/25/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Bait

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Cast & Crew

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Antoine Fuqua

Director

Jamie Foxx

Alvin Sanders

David Morse

Edgar Clenteen

Doug Hutchison

Bristol

Robert Pastorelli

Jaster

Kimberly Elise

Lisa Hill

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Bait

Jamie Foxx as Alvin Sanders and Kimberly Elise as his strong-willed girlfriend Lisa. Mike Epps (left) is Stevie, Alvin Sanders' (Jamie Foxx-right) ever-scheming brother. U.S. Treasury investigator Edgar Clenteen (David Morse-right) tries to intimidate Alvin Sanders (Jamie Foxx). Jamie Foxx is Alvin Sanders. David Morse is Edgar Clenteen. Doug Hutchison is Bristol. View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Landing in jail for a petty theft crime, Alvin finds himself sharing a cell with John Jaster, the incarcerated half of the pair of high-tech thieves responsible for the missing gold. His partner, Bristol, is still at large. Alvin wants only to get out of prison and start fresh with his girlfriend, Lisa, and when the Feds, led by U.S. Treasury investigator Clenteen, set him loose on a sketchy deal, he thinks his luck has changed. Alvin has his freedom and the Feds have found their bait.
Director
Antoine Fuqua
Producer
Sean Ryerson
Screenwriter
Andrew Scheinman, Adam Scheinman, Tony Gilroy
Distributor
Warner Bros. Pictures
Production Co
Bait Films, Castle Rock Entertainment, Village Roadshow Prod.
Rating
R
Genre
Action, Comedy
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 15, 2000, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 25, 2009
Runtime
1h 59m
Sound Mix
SDDS, Dolby Digital, DTS, Surround, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)
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