From my favorite movies..

It's complicated... I really like the directing, acting and writing but, there are issues with the way it's shot that I just can't deny. As much as I love the storytelling and the fantastic performance but, there are also certain scenes that didn't need to exist.

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

This is a series of short stories, detailing what happens to people holding a particularly twenty-dollar-bill as it switches from owner to owner. Several of the segments are quite good, my favorites being with the holdup men: Christopher Lloyd and Steve Buscemi. (Now there's two interesting characters actors, for you!) It's not "familar fare"with strippers, profanity and the usual immoral messages that filmmakers love to give us. I was sorry to see that little old lady Linda Hunt use the Lord's name in vain. Overall, a decent "rental" but not a purchase. The cast is more interesting and deep than the story.

Twenty Bucks is, quite simply, a movie about a $20 bill. You follow one bill in particular from one owner to the next since it first makes it into the general population from a regular ATM machine. This bill makes it's way through good people and bad, from homeless people to rich tycoons to drug dealers and back again. In this bill's life, it gets lost more than I would believe a normal $20 bill would. They are usually protected pretty well to be blowing around in the street constantly. Also, the bill stayed pretty much in the same area and even back and forth through the same hands a few times. All this may be unusual but when thinking on the subject, each bill's lifetime is as unique as our own and while unusual, not impossible.Just like with our money, some people hold on to some bills longer than others and these people in the movie are the ones with the longer stories. Easily the most entertaining story was the one with Frank (Steve Buscemi) and Jimmy (Christopher Lloyd). Frank is a scam artist until persuaded by Jimmy he can make quite a bit more his way, robbing convenience stores. I felt like I wanted more from these two, which is probably why it was the best. It did not overdo it and make me sick of the characters.This is is the type of movie you can recommend to those who have seen it all. It will keep you entertained for 90 minutes if nothing else. 7/10

I caught this on cable a few years back and was immediately intrigued. If you've ever wondered where your money has been, this movie will leave you a little more enlightened...and frightened! From the G-string of a stripper at a Bachelor's party to the hands of a ten year old in a fishing contest to the frantic hands of a homeless woman with Lottery winnings in mind - this bill's journey is surprising and hilarious. The stories around the main idea abound and are far from dull. Christopher Lloyd and Steve Buscemi's scenes are, in my opinion, the highlight of this film. I've never understood why this movie is so wildly underrated. I've never come across any acquaintance that has seen it when I ask. If you get the chance, watch it, you won't be disappointed.

TWENTY BUCKS (1993) *** Elisabeth Shue, Brendan Fraser, Steve Buscemi, Christopher Lloyd, Linda Hunt, Melora Walters, David Schwimmer, Alan North, Spalding Gray, Gladys Knight. Whimsical look at the journey of a twenty dollar bill and how it effects its new and frequent owner. Shue shines in her segment as a strugglling writer as does Fraser, a young groom with cold feet.