What’s The Worst That Could Happen? Parent Guide

Parent Movie Review
by Kerry Bennett

Kevin Caffery (Martin Lawrence) has a nasty habit of picking up things that don’t belong to him and passing them on for a tidy profit. But this high-end art thief has the tables turned on him when billionaire Max Fairbanks (Danny DeVito) steals his lucky ring during a botched burglary at Fairbanks’ beach house. So begins an all-out war between the housebreaker and the malicious tycoon.

Considering the businessman’s lengthy list of legal infractions, bankruptcy, and an ever-growing inventory of cast off mistresses, this trinket hardly seems worth the trouble Fairbanks goes through to protect it from the ripped-off robber. But he sees it as a fortuitous sign that his luck’s about to change without suffering any consequences for his past felonies. Caffery, on the other hand, will have a lot of explaining to do especially to the girl (Carmen Ejogo) who gave him the ring. This criminal coup has him hopping mad and he’s ready to trade tit-for-tat until he gets his ring off the fat little pinkie finger of the cigar puffing billionaire.

Although this story looks for humor in the ludicrous antics of these battling antagonists, their questionable ethics leave little to applaud in either character. They are both connoisseur racketeers who’ll stoop as low as they need to for a little profit. Unfortunately their criminal capers are carried out while uttering endless profanities and trading sexual banter with other characters in the film. Parents may also be concerned with the blatant larceny that is portrayed as comedic entertainment, some barely clad women and at least one character with uncertain sexual preferences.

Even the handful of comedic zingers can’t save this film from the childish actions of Caffery and Fairbanks. What’s The Worst That Could Happen? is a prime example of what can go wrong when Hollywood tries to make a hero out of a common crook.

Starring Martin Lawrence, Danny DeVito. Running time: 99 minutes. Updated April 17, 2009

About author

Kerry Bennett

Kerry Bennett is interested in media from both a journalist and parent perspective. Along with authoring articles for several family-oriented publications, she has written for Parent Previews for over 15 years. As a parent herself, she believes parents play a powerful role in teaching media literacy in their homes.

What’s The Worst That Could Happen?
Rating & Content Info

Why is What’s The Worst That Could Happen? rated PG-13? What’s The Worst That Could Happen? is rated PG-13 by the MPAA

Overall: D- Two criminals try to outwit each other while they fight over a lucky ring in a movie that is filled with profanities, explicit sexual innuendos and moderate violence.

Violence: C+ Man steals picture, man draws a gun on burglar and threatens to shoot, man hit in groin with tennis ball, several scenes of burglars breaking into homes and stealing items, husband and wife verbally fight in front of children, man kicked in face, guard and police shown with drawn guns at crime scene, man shoots above head of another man, woman uses spray on man and police, men fall down stairs, men fight on boat, men lie at Senate hearing on at least two occasions.

Sexual Content: D+ Woman queries man about sleeping with her, couple shown in bed together next day, woman’s bare shoulders shown, kissing between couple, men briefly discuss relationship founded on sex, extended scene of man looking at centerfold, some nudity shown, mistress in tub with only shoulders showing, sexual banter between couple in bathroom, naked woman comes out of tub but no nudity shown, man makes reference to man’s genitals on at least 3 occasions, reference made to past relationship between man and his assistant, man portrayed as possibly homosexual or bisexual, couple’s argument includes sexual references, man makes comment about woman’s breast, man makes reference to sexual activity, woman’s shirt barely covers her, some nudity shown, extended scene of clothed woman bending over shown from behind, extended scene including excessively repeated sexually obscene terms and gestures, reference made to man’s genitals, man attacks woman in elevator and on couch, second man depicted as possibly homosexual.

Language: D- Includes at least 13 terms of Deity, 52 mild profanities, 33 moderate profanities, 14 extreme profanities including at least 12 obscene sexual gestures and at least 3 sexual slang terms are used.

Alcohol / Drug Use: C+ Man drinks from bottle in bed, men drink and smoke in bar on numerous occasions, main character shown smoking cigar throughout movie, man drinks from flask during burglary, men and women drink at art shows, woman shown smoking and drinking after rejection from man.

Page last updated April 17, 2009