Life

(Universal)

Ted Demme pairs Eddie Murphy with Martin Lawrence as sleazy con man Ray and finicky bank teller Claude, two mismatched buddies serving the title term in a Mississippi State Prison after being framed by a redneck sheriff for killing a gambler in 1932. Murphy and Lawrence have a kind of Odd Couple chemistry that is more touching than raucous, and even the less politically correct humor has a chastened edge -- the cons prove heroic, if tragic. Although this Life is hardly beautiful, it does pass the time.