Trading Places
Theatrical poster for Trading Places
Directed by	John Landis
Produced by	George Folsey Jr. John David Landis (born August 3, 1950) is an American movie Actor, director, writer, and producer. Aaron Russo Irwin Russo Sam Williams
Written by	Timothy Harris Herschel Weingrod
Starring	Dan Aykroyd Eddie Murphy Ralph Bellamy Don Ameche Denholm Elliott and Jamie Lee Curtis
Music by	Elmer Bernstein
Cinematography	Robert Paynter
Editing by	Malcolm Campbell
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date(s)	June 8, 1983
Running time	118 min. Aaron Russo (February 14 1943 &ndash August 24 2007 was an American entertainment businessman film maker, and political activist Sam Williams is the name of Sam Williams (American journalist Sam Williams (footballer (born 1987 English soccer player Herschel Weingrod (30 October 1947 Milwaukee, Wisconsin, US)is an American Screen Writer. Daniel Edward "Dan" Aykroyd, CM (born July 1, 1952) is an Academy Award -nominated and Emmy Award -winning Canadian-American Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy (born April 3 1961 is an Academy Award -nominated Golden Globe - Screen Actors Guild Award -winning American Ralph Rexford Bellamy ( June 17, 1904 – November 29, 1991) was an American Actor with a career spanning sixty-two Don Ameche (born Dominic Felix Amici; May 31 1908 – December 6 1993) was an American actor Denholm Mitchell Elliott, CBE (31 May 1922 &ndash 6 October 1992 was a distinguished English Actor of stage and Screen, with Jamie Lee Curtis (born November 22 1958 is a two-time Golden Globe -winning BAFTA -winning and Emmy -nominated American Film Elmer Bernstein ( April 4 1922 - 18 August 2004) was an Academy and two-time Golden Globe award winning American Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American motion picture production and Distribution company, based in Hollywood California. Events 68 - The Roman Senate accepts emperor Galba. 536 - St Silverius becomes Pope (probable Year 1983 ( MCMLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar)
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$28,000,000 (estimate)
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

Trading Places is an Academy Award-nominated 1983 comedy film starring Eddie Murphy, Dan Aykroyd and Jamie Lee Curtis. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States "The Oscar" redirects here for the film see The Oscar (film. Comedy (from the Greek κωμωδίαkomodia has a popular meaning (any discourse generally intended to amuse especially in Television, Film, and Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy (born April 3 1961 is an Academy Award -nominated Golden Globe - Screen Actors Guild Award -winning American Daniel Edward "Dan" Aykroyd, CM (born July 1, 1952) is an Academy Award -nominated and Emmy Award -winning Canadian-American Jamie Lee Curtis (born November 22 1958 is a two-time Golden Globe -winning BAFTA -winning and Emmy -nominated American Film It was directed by John Landis and written by Timothy Harris and Herschel Weingrod. A film director, or filmmaker, is a person who directs the making of a Film. John David Landis (born August 3, 1950) is an American movie Actor, director, writer, and producer. It was produced by Aaron Russo. Aaron Russo (February 14 1943 &ndash August 24 2007 was an American entertainment businessman film maker, and political activist

Plot

The movie's premise features two immensely wealthy and patrician brothers, Mortimer and Randolph Duke (Don Ameche and Ralph Bellamy), who find themselves on opposite sides of the nature versus nurture argument. The term " patrician " originally referred to a group of elite families in Ancient Rome, including both their natural and Don Ameche (born Dominic Felix Amici; May 31 1908 – December 6 1993) was an American actor Ralph Rexford Bellamy ( June 17, 1904 – November 29, 1991) was an American Actor with a career spanning sixty-two The nature versus nurture debates concern the relative importance of an individual's innate qualities ("nature" i The brothers decide that the best way to resolve the argument is to ruin a successful man's life, dramatically improve the fortunes of a street hustler, and see how they respond. Mortimer believes that regardless of their shifting fortunes, the well-bred subject will rise to the challenge and the riff-raff will fail no matter what opportunities are presented to him. Randolph insists the well-bred subject will unravel in society while the hustler will take full advantage of his new situation and become a changed man. Both satisfied with the plan, the Duke brothers shake hands to seal a wager for their "usual amount".

Louis Winthorpe III (Dan Aykroyd) is a respected senior employee of the Dukes who manages their Philadelphia commodities brokerage firm, Duke & Duke. Louis Winthorpe III, or "Louie" is a fictional character from the movie Trading Places, played by Dan Aykroyd, Louis Winthorpe III a graduate Daniel Edward "Dan" Aykroyd, CM (born July 1, 1952) is an Academy Award -nominated and Emmy Award -winning Canadian-American Philadelphia (ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə A commodity broker is a firm or individual who executes orders to buy or sell commodity contracts on behalf of clients and charges them a Commission. His bona fides are impeccable, having attended Exeter and Harvard. Phillips Exeter Academy (also called Exeter, Phillips Exeter or PEA) is a Co-educational independent Boarding school for grades 9–12 Louis has reached the ideal level of detached self-satisfaction, complete with the superficial fiancée, Penelope. However, the Dukes arrange to shatter Louis' reputation by having one of their operatives, Clarence Beeks (Paul Gleason), "expose" him as a petty thief. Paul Xavier Gleason ( May 4 1939 – May 27 2006) was an American film and television Actor. As Louis is processed in jail, a scene featuring a cameo by Frank Oz, Louis finds that another item has been planted in his clothing — a cellophane bag containing angel dust. Frank Oz (born May 25, 1944) is a British-born American Film director, Actor and Puppeteer. Phencyclidine (a complex clip of the chemical name phenylcyclohexylpiperidine, commonly initialised as PCP) is a Dissociative drug Louis does not fare well in jail — by the time Penelope arrives to post bail, he is disheveled, bruised, black-eyed and cut. When he finally appears to convince Penelope he has been falsely accused, a prostitute, Ophelia (Jamie Lee Curtis), lustily kisses Louis and begs him for a dime bag, promising to "do all the things he likes". Jamie Lee Curtis (born November 22 1958 is a two-time Golden Globe -winning BAFTA -winning and Emmy -nominated American Film

Penelope flees in a state of shock, while Ophelia explains to Louis that someone (Beeks) paid her so Louis would enjoy the "prank. " His life continues to deteriorate. His bank accounts have been frozen and he has been locked out of his home by his devoted butler, Coleman (Denholm Elliott), who is unhappily forced to take part in the Dukes' plan since he is technically in their employ. Denholm Mitchell Elliott, CBE (31 May 1922 &ndash 6 October 1992 was a distinguished English Actor of stage and Screen, with Ophelia takes pity on the broken Winthorpe and takes him back to her apartment. The hooker with a heart of gold (also the whore with a heart of gold Aldonza ( Sophia Loren) in Man of La Mancha Belle At first she makes him sleep on the couch, as her bed is to be used "for business only. " However, he suffers a horrible cold and she does not let him leave her bed, going as far as to cancel appointments for him.

Meanwhile, street hustler Billy Ray Valentine (Eddie Murphy) had been arrested when he innocently bumped into Louis (before his downfall), his action perceived as a robbery attempt and caught by police, with Winthorpe stating he "wants to press full charges. Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy (born April 3 1961 is an Academy Award -nominated Golden Globe - Screen Actors Guild Award -winning American " When Billy Ray is briefly jailed, he attempts to intimidate his hulking cellmates with his purported karate abilities, such as the Quart of Blood Technique. ( or is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands from indigenous fighting methods and Chinese Kenpō. The Dukes bail him out and invite him into their limousine, and then into their supposed program that assists underprivileged members of society. Traditionally bail is some form of Property deposited or pledged to a Court in order to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding

Billy Ray is brought to his (formerly Louis') new house and eventually accepts his new luxury, inviting all of the patrons from his favorite bar back to the house for a party. However, Valentine already starts to show signs that he has been changed by wealth, seeing his guests as freeloaders. On his first day at his new job, the Dukes give Billy Ray a brief primer on their business, explaining the concept of commodities in the simplest possible terms. Billy Ray catches on in that the Dukes "make bets" and invest money on behalf of clients on whether futures will go up or down, comparing them to bookies. In Finance, a futures contract is a standardized Contract, traded on a Futures exchange, to buy or sell a certain Underlying instrument A bookmaker, bookie or turf accountant, is an organization or a person that takes bets and pays winnings depending upon results and depending on the nature Eventually, Billy Ray's real-world perspective proves to be an accurate predictor of a commodity's movement.

Both characters' plights come to a head during a Duke & Duke Christmas party. Much to Mortimer's chagrin, Louis shows up dressed in a soiled Santa Claus costume, attempting to steal food at the buffet and frame Billy Ray by planting drugs in his desk drawer, also brandishing a pistol. Santa Claus, also known as Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle, or simply " Santa " is the When he flees in a drunken stupor the Dukes see that Louis has hit rock bottom, and in a washroom conversation, Mortimer concedes defeat in the bet and pays the "usual amount" of their wagers: One dollar. Billy Ray, who had hidden in a bathroom cubicle to smoke a Cannabis joint Louis had tried to plant in his desk, overhears the conversation and learns that the Dukes plan to push him back on the streets, while deciding not to restore Louis to his position, since his actions as a street person disgusted them. Cannabis ( Cán-na-bis) is a Genus of Flowering plants that includes three putative species Cannabis sativa subsp The Dukes reveal their true opinion of Valentine, when Mortimer remarks in the washroom: "Do you really believe I would have a nigger run our family business, Randolph?"

Realizing that both he and Louis have been used, simply for the amusement of the Dukes and the two will both be on the streets by the end of it, Billy Ray follows Louis back to Ophelia's apartment. Nigger is a Noun in the English language, most notable for its usage in a derogatory context to refer to Black people, and also as an informal Louis, hitting "rock-bottom" after a dog urinates on him, attempts suicide with his pistol. He even fails at this, as the pistol jams before it can fire. In utter desperation, Louis then attempts suicide again, this time with an overdose of pills, and collapses.

Louis is brought back to his original home and is nursed back to health, at which point Valentine, Coleman, and Ophelia inform him of the true nature of the Dukes' nefarious scheme. Louis becomes enraged as he realizes the Dukes abused their power and destroyed his life just for one dollar. The four plan their revenge. At first, Louis plans to shoot them in the knees with a double-barrel shotgun, but is talked out of it by Billy Ray, who theorises that "the best way to get back at rich people is to turn them into poor people". Billy Ray and Louis have learned of the Dukes' plan to purchase (through Beeks) an advance copy of the official orange crop report, to help them corner the orange juice market. In Finance, to corner the market is to purchase enough of a particular Commodity to allow the price to be manipulated whether undertaken by an individual or a company In an elaborate scheme that is risky due to the fact it is likely to backfire (as it nearly does), the four manage to steal the real crop report from Beeks (by trapping him in a gorilla costume and locking him in a cage with another gorilla) and deliver a fake version to the Dukes. Pooling as much money as possible, including the life savings of Ophelia (who has by now become romantically attached to Louis) and Coleman, the money the Dukes paid for the fake crop report and their own investments, Billy Ray and Louis head to the the New York Board of Trade at 4 World Trade Center to execute their plan. The New York Board of Trade (NYBOT is a wholly-owned subsidiary of IntercontinentalExchange (ICE 4 World Trade Center redirects here For World Trade Center second version Tower 4 see 150 Greenwich Street. With their knowledge of the actual crop report and the Dukes' misplaced trust in the fake crop report, their strategy to short the market goes off with flying colors, resulting in an incredible (undisclosed) amount of wealth for Louis, Billy Ray, Ophelia and Coleman and a $394,000,000. In Finance, short selling or "shorting" is the practice of selling a Financial instrument that the seller borrows first (does not own and then 00 margin call for the Dukes. In finance a margin is collateral that the holder of a position in securities, options, or Futures contracts has to deposit to cover Approached by the incredulous, indignant, and now-bankrupt Duke brothers, Billy Ray, just to rub in their misfortune, tells them that he and Louis made a wager: Louis believed that they couldn't send the Dukes onto the streets and get rich at the same time, while Billy Ray bet that they could. The wager: One dollar. Meanwhile, a weary Clarence Beeks is sent to Africa with the gorilla.

The movie ends with Billy Ray, Louis, Ophelia and Coleman enjoying a lavish tropical vacation.

Explanation of climactic scene

See also: Short (finance)

With the authentic orange crop report indicating a good harvest of fresh oranges, frozen concentrated orange juice (FCOJ) would be less important to food producers and so would be likely to drop in price once traders heard the news. In Finance, short selling or "shorting" is the practice of selling a Financial instrument that the seller borrows first (does not own and then A concentrate is a form of Substance which has had the majority of its base component (in the case of a liquid the Solvent) removed Orange juice is a Fruit juice obtained by squeezing pressing or otherwise crushing the interior of an orange. However, by way of a fraudulent report, the Duke brothers are led to believe that the orange harvest would be less successful, necessitating greater demand for stockpiled FCOJ in orange products in the coming year, thereby driving the price up. By capitalizing on this knowledge (and the Duke brothers' missteps) the protagonists are able to profit by manipulating the futures market as follows:

• Unlike a conventional stock transaction, futures contracts can be sold even when the seller does not yet own any of the commodity. The Protagonist or main character is the central figure of a story. A futures exchange is a central financial exchange where people can trade standardized Futures contracts; that is a contract to buy specific quantities of a Commodity In Finance, a futures contract is a standardized Contract, traded on a Futures exchange, to buy or sell a certain Underlying instrument A contract to sell, for example, 15,000 pounds of FCOJ in April at $1. 42 per pound, merely indicates the seller's obligation to deliver and the buyer's obligation to purchase the product at the specified price and time. It does not matter how or where the seller gets the product, as long as, one way or another, he is able to deliver it at that price at that time, even if it results in a sale at a loss to him.

• In this case, Winthorpe and Valentine first sell FCOJ futures at $1. 42 per pound, a price inflated by the Dukes themselves. (The Duke Brothers' buying leads other traders to believe that the Dukes are trying to corner the market, causing a buying frenzy. In Finance, to corner the market is to purchase enough of a particular Commodity to allow the price to be manipulated whether undertaken by an individual or a company ) Then, when the price falls — first as a result of Winthorpe and Valentine's eager selling, then to a much greater degree upon the release of the real crop report indicating a good harvest — Winthorpe and Valentine buy futures for prices between $. 46 and $. 29 per pound. Thus, for every futures contract they had previously sold at about $1. 42, they buy another back (for resale to those who bought the expensive contracts from them previously) for only $. 46 to $. 29, resulting in a profit of $. 96 to $1. 13 per pound. In actual markets, price limits -- "limit up" and "limit down" -- protect the clearinghouse from defaults and would preclude such a drastic price jump.

• Though it is not stated in the movie exactly how much they make, if they invested roughly $500,000 from a combination of Winthorpe/Valentine's investment, the Dukes' money from buying the fake report from a Billy Ray posing as Clarence Beeks, and Coleman's and Ophelia's savings, they would have turned it into over $10 million. It is strongly implied that they purchased additional futures on margin and made dozens (or hundreds) of millions more, since a lesser amount would not bankrupt the Dukes. In finance a margin is collateral that the holder of a position in securities, options, or Futures contracts has to deposit to cover Likely, the bribe money for Beeks that Valentine received was enough to leverage such a massive loss from the Dukes.

• At the same time that Winthorpe/Valentine sell their futures contracts, the Duke brothers are rapidly purchasing them, even at high prices, because they incorrectly expect that the crop report (falsely suggesting a greater need for stockpiled orange juice) will create a demand at even higher prices, securing them a profit. When it turns out that the leaked report they were given was fraudulent and the true report is revealed, the price begins to plummet before they are able to sell off their contracts. This leaves them with an obligation to buy millions of pounds of FCOJ at a price more than a dollar per pound higher than they can sell them for, bankrupting them. The legality of Winthorpe/Valentine's actions can be questioned but commodities markets do not have insider traders laws as in the stock markets.

Cast

• Dan Aykroyd as Louis Winthorpe III
• Eddie Murphy as Billy Ray Valentine
• Ralph Bellamy as Randolph Duke
• Don Ameche as Mortimer Duke
• Denholm Elliott as Coleman
• Jamie Lee Curtis as Ophelia
• Kristin Holby as Penelope Witherspoon
• Paul Gleason as Clarence Beeks
• Alfred Drake as President of Exchange
• Kelly Curtis as Muffy
• James Belushi as Harvey
• Al Franken as Baggage handler #1
• Tom Davis as Baggage handler #2
• Bo Diddley as Pawnbroker

Production

Most of the movie was filmed on location in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Daniel Edward "Dan" Aykroyd, CM (born July 1, 1952) is an Academy Award -nominated and Emmy Award -winning Canadian-American Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy (born April 3 1961 is an Academy Award -nominated Golden Globe - Screen Actors Guild Award -winning American Ralph Rexford Bellamy ( June 17, 1904 – November 29, 1991) was an American Actor with a career spanning sixty-two Don Ameche (born Dominic Felix Amici; May 31 1908 – December 6 1993) was an American actor Denholm Mitchell Elliott, CBE (31 May 1922 &ndash 6 October 1992 was a distinguished English Actor of stage and Screen, with Jamie Lee Curtis (born November 22 1958 is a two-time Golden Globe -winning BAFTA -winning and Emmy -nominated American Film Kristin Clotilde Holby is an American actress and Model. Holby grew up in Larchmont New York and attended Murray Avenue School and Mamaroneck High Paul Xavier Gleason ( May 4 1939 – May 27 2006) was an American film and television Actor. Alfred Drake ( October 7, 1914 - July 25, 1992) was an American Actor and Singer. Kelly Lee Curtis (born June 17, 1956 in Santa Monica California) is the elder child of actors Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh and James Adam "Jim" Belushi (born June 15, 1954) is an American Actor, Comedian and Musician, the younger brother Alan Stuart "Al" Franken (born May 21 1951 is an Emmy Award –winning American Comedian, Writer, progressive Tom Davis (born 13 August 1952) is an Emmy Award winning Comedy writer and performer Bo Diddley ( December 30 1928 &ndash June 2 2008, born Ellas Otha Bates) was an original and influential American Philadelphia (ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə Portions were set in New York City, at the World Trade Center and the New York Board of Trade exchange floor at 4 World Trade Center. The City of New York The World Trade Center in New York City, United States (sometimes informally the WTC or Twin Towers) was a complex of seven buildings in Lower Manhattan The New York Board of Trade (NYBOT is a wholly-owned subsidiary of IntercontinentalExchange (ICE 4 World Trade Center redirects here For World Trade Center second version Tower 4 see 150 Greenwich Street. Additionally, many of the interior office scenes of Duke and Duke were filmed within the historic rooms of the Park Avenue Armory.

The final scene was filmed in Saint Croix, in the United States Virgin Islands. The United States Virgin Islands is a group of Islands in the Caribbean that are an Insular area of the United States.

Rating

The film was rated R by the MPAA, for brief nude scenes when Jamie Lee Curtis takes off her top in front of Dan Aykroyd and when several topless women dance at the party held by Valentine. Jamie Lee Curtis (born November 22 1958 is a two-time Golden Globe -winning BAFTA -winning and Emmy -nominated American Film Daniel Edward "Dan" Aykroyd, CM (born July 1, 1952) is an Academy Award -nominated and Emmy Award -winning Canadian-American There was also some strong language used in the movie.

Television broadcasts

Some elements are added or removed from the film for television.

• The only deleted scene, in which Clarence Beeks drugs a security guard and steals the crop report while Sunset Boulevard plays on television, was included in television versions. Sunset Boulevard is a 1950 American Film noir classic Directed and co-written by Billy Wilder, it was named
• Occasionally broadcasts of the film will edit out either the entire scene of Louis and Billy Ray walking into the WTC or simply edit Louis' statement about the WTC "In this building it's either kill or be killed" out of respect for the victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks. In its September 23, 2007 broadcast (and continuing broadcasts), however, Comedy Central left the remark in. Comedy Central is an American Cable television and Satellite television channel that carries predominantly Comedy programming
• The original film has a scene where Billy Ray cleans out Louis's desk of the drugs planted by the Dukes but yet drops a hand-rolled marijuana cigarette into his coat pocket. Billy then finds an unoccupied stall in the men's washroom and consumes the drug. He is momentarily panicked when he realizes he cannot discreetly exhale the smoke, until he stands on the commode, blowing smoke into a vent in the ceiling. It is during this 'hiatus' that Billy overhears the true nature of the Dukes plan, as they discuss it in the washroom.

Awards

• Curtis and Elliott received BAFTA awards for their roles. The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA is a British charity that hosts annual awards shows for film television television craft video games and forms of animation
• The film was nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Score. "The Oscar" redirects here for the film see The Oscar (film.

Allusions in other films

• The Duke brothers appear as two homeless men in Murphy's 1988 movie Coming to America, also directed by John Landis. Coming to America is a 1988 Academy Award -nominated Comedy film directed by John Landis. Murphy's character hands a wad of cash to a homeless man, who is revealed to be Mortimer. Randolph observes and says, "Mortimer, we're back!" as a snippet of the score from Trading Places can be heard.

References

See also

• Futures exchange

External links

• Trading Places at the Internet Movie Database
• Learning the Ropes: The Basics of Futures from World Link Futures, Inc. A futures exchange is a central financial exchange where people can trade standardized Futures contracts; that is a contract to buy specific quantities of a Commodity