Ernest Goes to Jail
| Ernest Goes to Jail | |
|---|---|
| File:Ernest goes to jail poster.jpg Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | John Cherry |
| Written by | Charlie Cohen |
| Produced by | Martin Erlichman |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Peter Stein |
| Edited by | Sharyn L. Ross |
| Music by | Bruce Arntson Kirby Shelstad |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution |
Release date |
|
Running time | 81 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $9 million |
| Box office | $25 million |
Ernest Goes to Jail is a 1990 American comedy film directed by John Cherry and starring Jim Varney.[1] It is the fourth film to feature the character Ernest P. Worrell. It was shot in Nashville and Tennessee State Penitentiary.
Plot
Security guards Chuck and Bobby hear a sound coming from Howard County Bank and Trust and find a floor polisher that night custodian Ernest is trying to turn on. Ernest dreams that he would be a clerk, but he ends up making a mess in the bank and he becomes magnetic after being electrocuted. The next day, bank president Oscar Pendlesmythe's assistant, Charlotte Sparrow, requires him to clean up his disastrous mess and asks Ernest out to dinner to give him advice. He later receives in the mail a summons to jury duty. During the trial, convict Rubin Bartlett, who is being tried for killing a fellow prisoner, notices that death row inmate Felix Nash resembles Ernest. Rubin's lawyer convinces the jury to tour the prison, where Ernest is kidnapped by Nash and another inmate named Lyle and forced to switch places with Nash. He has numerous misadventures in prison until he is sent to the electric chair in Nash's place.
The electrocution fails, and Ernest is transformed into a type of superhuman, with the ability to shoot lightning bolts from his hands. Lyle stands in his way, only to reveal he has taken a liking to Ernest and tells him to stop Nash. Ernest offers to free Lyle, who declines on the basis he is a guilty man who must serve his time. Ernest escapes from the prison and makes his way home, only to discover that his Pee-wee Herman–like décor has been replaced by a slick lounge lizard style of decorating. He exclaims, "I've been vandalized—by Elvis!" Ernest then goes to the bank, in his old clothes, only to find that Nash has assumed his identity and is in the process of robbing the bank and is holding Chuck and Charlotte hostage. During the ensuing battle between the two of them Ernest gets electrocuted yet again. Now Ernest has become polarized and gained the ability to fly. He uses his super powers to fly through the skylight of the bank with a bomb that Nash had attached to the vault which leads to a spectacular mid-air explosion. Everyone thinks that Ernest has been killed, until Ernest falls through the skylight and lands on Nash. Ernest tiredly declares, "I came, I saw, I got blowed up" and then faints.
Cast
- Jim Varney as Ernest P. Worrell / Felix Nash / Auntie Nelda
- Gailard Sartain as Chuck
- Bill Byrge as Bobby
- Barbara Tyson as Charlotte Sparrow (credited as "Barbara Bush")
- Barry Scott as Rubin Bartlett
- Randall "Tex" Cobb as Lyle
- Dan Leegant as Oscar Pendlesmythe
- Charles Napier as Warden Carmichael
- Jackie Welch as Judge
- Jim Conrad as Eddie
- Emily Corbishdale as Betty McGee
- Andy Stahl as Jerry (as Andrew Stahl)
- Bob Babbitt as Washing Con
- Myke R. Mueller as Vinnie (as Myke Mueller)
- Chambers Stevens as Jury Man (uncredited)
- Buck Ford as Rubin's Attorney (uncredited)
Reception
Critical response
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 11% of 9 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 3.6/10.
Box office
The movie debuted in third place during its opening weekend, earning $6,143,372.[2][3] Its total gross was $25,029,569.[4] This is the second highest grossing "Ernest" film, behind Ernest Saves Christmas.
Home media
Originally released on Laserdisc[5] and VHS in January 1991, and its first DVD release was on September 3, 2002 from Touchstone Home Entertainment. Mill Creek Entertainment re-released it on February 10, 2008 as part of the Ernest 2-Movie Collection with Slam Dunk Ernest and on January 18, 2011, as part of a two-disc set Ernest Triple Feature along with Ernest Goes to Camp and Ernest Scared Stupid. They also released the film for the first time on Blu-ray on March 29, 2011 in a single disc Double Feature set along with Ernest Goes to Camp. The 2011 releases mark the first time the film has been available in widescreen.
TV Version
An alternate edit of this film aired on NBC in August 1994, which contained several additional scenes not found on its home media releases, including an alternative ending scene where Ernest now works as a bank clerk, but another electrical mishap causes a file cabinet to fly towards him.[6]
References
- ^ "Ernest Goes to Jail". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
- ^ "'Turtles' Take: $50.9 Million in Two Weeks : Box office: The kids movie featuring the wise-cracking quartet of terrapins is close to setting a record for an independent film". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2012-06-05.
- ^ "Weekend Box Office Results for April 6–8, 1990". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2008-04-01.
- ^ "Ernest Goes to Jail (1990)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2008-04-01.
- ^ "Ernest Goes to Jail LDDB Entry". LDDB. March 6, 2009. Retrieved November 17, 2019.
- ^ "Ernest Goes to Jail (1990) - IMDb". IMDb. Retrieved 26 March 2019.
External links
- Articles with short description
- Short description with empty Wikidata description
- Articles with missing files
- 1990 films
- Template film date with 1 release date
- IMDb ID not in Wikidata
- American children's comedy films
- American prison comedy films
- 1990s English-language films
- Ernest P. Worrell films
- Films about capital punishment
- Films about lookalikes
- Films directed by John R. Cherry III
- Films shot in Tennessee
- Touchstone Pictures films
- 1990s American films