RottenTomatoes.com
Log In | Register | What is RT?
RT's Blu-ray HQ
  • Home
  • Movies
  • DVD
  • Celebrities
  • News
  • Critics
  • Trailers & Pictures
  • CommunityBeta
  • Box Office
  • | In Theaters
  • | Opening
  • | Upcoming
  • | Best Of
  • | Certified Fresh
  • | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
help icon Enhanced RT
searches on Google
Click here to turn on enhanced search results from RT on your Google searches.
 
Movies / On DVD / Let's Go to Prison
Let's Go to Prison

Rate this Movie Help Icon

  • Write a Review
  • Read Reviews
  • Add to List
  • Get this Movie
  • Buy Poster External Icon
  • Visit Official Site External Icon
Bookmark and Share

Let's Go to Prison (2006)

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
10 %
Tomatometer
Template ImageTemplate Image

How does the Tomatometer work Help Icon

Reviews Counted:40

Fresh:4

Rotten:36

Average Rating:2.9/10

Consensus: Let's Go to Prison is guilty on all counts of cliched setups, base humor, and failure to ellicit laughs.

Rated: R [See Full Rating] for language, sexual content, some violence and drug material.

Runtime: 1 hr 32 mins

Genre: Comedies

Theatrical Release:Nov 17, 2006 Wide

Box Office: $4,613,815

Synopsis: When asked about prison movies, the film buff instantly calls to mind epochal pictures such as Cool Hand Luke, The Count of Monte Cristo and Birdman of Alcatraz — or perhaps classics in the making... When asked about prison movies, the film buff instantly calls to mind epochal pictures such as Cool Hand Luke, The Count of Monte Cristo and Birdman of Alcatraz — or perhaps classics in the making like The Shawshank Redemption, In the Name of the Father and The Green Mile. These important works of art have two things in common: 1) they explore the fears and triumphs of unjustly arrested men railing against a cruel system and 2) they serve as a cornerstone of American dramatic cinema. Well...Let's Go To Prison shares one of those tenets. Frankly, we felt obligated to contribute to this genre of filmmaking with our own take on the core issues that inmates routinely face in 2006. While overcrowding and recidivism are topical and vital issues to address, so are other unique themes. In this film, we just happen to have the soap dropping that Steve McQueen never discovered and toilet wine that Dustin Hoffman failed to manufacture in Papillon. Based upon a non fiction book about how to stay out of jail (and/or survive it once you know you're headed upriver), Let's Go To Prison is an uncompromising, no-holdsbarred revenge comedy helmed by BOB ODENKIRK, the director who brought sketchcomedy fans Mr. Show With Bob and David. And he's about to give us everything that's been missing from the typical prison movie in his fresh, probing look at our penal system—rife with plenty of sweet, cloistered, man love. Felon John Lyshitski (DAX SHEPARD, Punk'd, Employee of the Month, Without a Paddle) has figured out the best way to get revenge on the now-dead judge who sent him to jail: "help" the official's obnoxious son, Nelson Biederman the IVth (WILL ARNETT, Arrested Development, RV, Blades of Glory), try to survive the clink. John strikes gold when Nelson is wrongly convicted of a crime and sent to the same penitentiary he used to call home. He gleefully sells pot to undercover cops and gets sent back to become Nelson's cellmate, ensuring that his new buddy gets the full treatment common in American penitentiaries. Let the games begin. Lesson #1: The joint's a scary place, so you better make friends fast. Right away, Nelson offends the wrong cons and is sold—by John—to Barry (CHI McBRIDE, The Nine, The Terminal, Undercover Brother) for prison snuggling. But the moment that revenge starts tasting sweet, Nelson becomes Big Man in the Big House and turns the tables on John...changing the rules of his insane game. November 17, 2006 is the day to shower with thugs, sip toilet wine and sharpen your shivs as the locked-up are set up in Carsey-Werner Films' inaugural title and Strike Entertainment's latest production: Let's Go To Prison, a Universal Pictures release. --© Universal Pictures [More]

Starring: Bob Odenkirk, Dax Shepard, Will Arnett, Chi McBride

Starring: Bob Odenkirk, Dax Shepard, Will Arnett, Chi McBride, Paul Young, Dylan Baker, Michael Shannon, David Koechner

Producer: Marc Abraham, Matt Berenson
Studio: Universal Pictures

[See More Credits]

  • Trailers
  • Pictures
  • Trailer
    >
    Dax Shepard & Will Arnett
    >
    Chi McBride
    >
1 - 3 of 3

See More Movie Trailers & Pictures

Get This Movie

Rent DVD
 
 

Click on the "ADD" button to put this movie into your Netflix queue.

 
 
Buy DVD
 
 
Release:

Mar 6, 2007

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for Let's Go to Prison

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Shepard's character periodically rattles off damning statistics about America's booming prison industry, but most of the gags are of the don't-drop-the-soap variety.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
07/28/09
J. R. Jones
J. R. Jones
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

As a comedy, Bob Odenkirk’s penitentiary send-up is bootless.

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
04/23/09
Tom Meek
Tom Meek
Boston Phoenix

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Hollywood.com | comment Comment
11/20/08
Brian Marder
Brian Marder
Hollywood.com

evern less funny than brothers solomon

Full Review Source: sbs.is | comment Comment
04/24/08
Stefan Birgir Stefansson
Stefan Birgir Stefansson
sbs.is

The short and the sweet of it: Let's Go to Prison is one of the worst pieces of Hollywood garbage I have ever seen.

Full Review Source: Calgary Movies | comment Comment
06/21/07
Ryan Cracknell
Ryan Cracknell
Calgary Movies

...has its share of effective moments - most of which come courtesy of star Will Arnett...

Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews | comment Comment
05/17/07
David Nusair
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews

Though sloppily edited like a bad B-movie, this poor man's version of Trading Places will undoubtedly resonate for anyone with a taste for gruesome gallows humor, and a desire to see a spoiled, rich kid get a taste of how the other half lives.

Full Review Source: NewsBlaze | comment Comment
03/27/07
Kam Williams
Kam Williams
NewsBlaze

89 minutes that drag on like, well, a prison sentence.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
03/01/07
Frank Lovece
Frank Lovece
Film Journal International

its off-kilter wit is displayed with stinginess (or is it laziness?).

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
01/15/07
Jesse Hassenger
Jesse Hassenger
Filmcritic.com

Oh gee, let's not.

Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment Comment
12/04/06
Jim Lane
Jim Lane
Sacramento News & Review

Let's not. And say we did.

Full Review Source: Quad City Times (Davenport, IA) | comment Comment
12/03/06
Linda Cook
Linda Cook
Quad City Times (Davenport, IA)

Prison makes its 84-minute running time feel like a five-year sentence with no chance for parole.

Full Review Source: AV Club | comment Comment
11/27/06
Nathan Rabin
Nathan Rabin
AV Club

It's an indifferently filmed pitch-black comedy shrouded in a pervasive grey funk that swallows up what few meager chuckles it manages.

Full Review Source: AV Club | comment Comment
11/25/06
Nathan Rabin
Nathan Rabin
AV Club

It's hard to get laughs out of stuff that devolved into parody 10 or 20 years ago.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly | comment Comment
11/23/06
Gregory Kirschling
Gregory Kirschling
Entertainment Weekly
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Life's too short.

Full Review Source: Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia) | comment Comment
11/22/06
Mark Palermo
Mark Palermo
Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

Consider this one disarmed and extremely pointless.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
11/21/06
Marc Savlov
Marc Savlov
Austin Chronicle

If movies could be punished, Let's Go to Prison would be sent to solitary confinement for impersonating a prison comedy.

Full Review Source: San Antonio Express-News | comment Comment
11/20/06
Larry Ratliff
Larry Ratliff
San Antonio Express-News

As crazy and subversive as Let's Go to Prison's makers might believe it to be, it's too undisciplined and predictable to amount to anything

Full Review Source: Reel Times: Reflections on Cinema | comment Comment
11/20/06
Mark Pfeiffer
Mark Pfeiffer
Reel Times: Reflections on Cinema

Arnett underplays to the point where he seems as shellshocked as his character, while Shepard seems to have forgotten that the film is supposed to be a comedy.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Reporter | comment Comment
11/20/06
Frank Scheck
Frank Scheck
Hollywood Reporter
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Because the movie can't bring itself to take that leap into full-on absurdity, the characters and comic opportunities stay confined to their cells.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
11/20/06
Michael Ordoña
Michael Ordoña
Los Angeles Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
all

Latest News for Let's Go to Prison

September 06, 2007: Box Office Guru Preview: Crowe vs. Bale in Box Office Shootout
Batman takes on Cinderella Man at the box office as the Russell Crowe-Christian Bale Western remake 3:10 to Yuma heads into the multiplexes over what is traditionally a... More...

July 31, 2007: Balls of Fury Writers Working on Night At The Museum 2
It made a billion dollars and I can't remember talking to ONE person who actually liked it. But you knew it was coming. The ball is rolling on another Night at the Museum. More...

November 30, 2006: Box Office Guru Preview: "Nativity" Leads Trio of New Releases
The post-turkey blues will kick in as the North American box office should slump this weekend following a busy Thanksgiving holiday frame. More...

November 21, 2006: Critical Consensus: "Halls" Spreads Little Cheer; "Déjà Vu" Intrigues; "The Fountain" Overflows; "Pick" Is Mixed
This week at the movies, we've got holiday mischief ("Deck the Halls," starring Matthew Broderick and Danny DeVito), a phenomenon known as déjà vu ("Déjà... More...

See All

More DVDs

Close
Top Rentals
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
14% 14% The Ugly Truth
98% 98% Up
36% 36% G.I. Joe: The Rise of …
52% 52% The Taking of Pelham 1…
45% 45% Ice Age: Dawn of the D…

More Rentals…

New On DVD This Week
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
36% 36% Angels & Demons
68% 68% Funny People
25% 25% Four Christmases
45% 45% Shorts
53% 53% David & Layla

More New Releases…

See All

RT On Current TV

The Rotten Tomatoes Show on Current TV

DIRECTV 358 | Comcast 107 | DISH Network 196 | More...

Learn how you can be part of the show

More...

What’s Hot On RT

Total Recall

Total Recall

John Travolta's top reviewed movies

Disney Countdown

Disney Countdown

Look back on Disney's best animated movies!

RT's Gift Guide

RT's Gift Guide

Give the best movies, gear, and more!

What's Coming Out

What's Coming Out

Find movies for the holiday weekend!

Other News

Close
  • Top Stories
  • Popular
  • Interviews
 
 

Comments

 
 
Top Stories
Headlines Comments
  
  • Weekly Ketchup: Zombieland 2 in 3D?
78
  • First Look (Sort Of) at New Nightmare's Freddy Source: ShockTillYouDrop.com
24
  • First Look at Shrek Forever After Source: USA Today
48
  • Woody Harrelson Will Battle Zombies in 3-D Source: Moviehole
26
  • Natalie Portman Says Kat Denning Is in Thor Source: MTV
34
  • Disney Restructuring Has Broad Implications Source: Los Angeles Times
10
  • Joel Silver Talks Ninja Assassin, Sgt. Rock, Lobo, and More Source: Collider.com
1
  • Weekly Ketchup: Idris Elba cast in Thor, more Spider-Man 4 rumors
128
  • Idris Elba Joins Thor Source: Hollywood Reporter
112
  • Jackass 3D Coming in 2010? Source: Collider.com
32
Popular
Headlines Comments
  
  • Friday Harvest: The Road, Avatar, and more!
95
  • Total Recall: John Travolta's Best Movies
93
  • Ban Them All! 10 Infamously Controversial Movies
86
  • 5 Facts About The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
74
  • Critics Consensus: Flee From Ninja Assassin
47
  • WB offers DVD to Blu-ray Trade-In Program
33
  • Weekly Ketchup: Zombieland 2 in 3D?
26
  • Five Favorite Films With Zombieland Director Ruben Fleischer
24
  • RT's Blu-ray Picks from WB
23
  • RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: Angels & Demons, Funny People, and Superman
19
Interviews
Headlines Comments
  
  • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
16
  • Eric Bana talks Love the Beast - RT Interview
11
  • Fight Club Sound Designer Reflects on Film's 10th Anniversary
21
  • James Schamus talks Taking Woodstock - RT Interview
8
  • John Hurt Talks Harry Potter, Quentin Crisp and Alien - The RT Interview
15
  • Terry Gilliam Talks Doctor Parnassus
21
  • Wes Anderson Talks Fantastic Mr. Fox - RT Interview
8
  • Wolverine Creator Len Wein Talks About the Film
28
  • Gavin Hood Talks Wolverine; Possible Sequel
28
  • Duncan Jones talks Moon, Sam Rockwell, and Mute
14
 
 

Sponsored Links

Around The Network

  • Let's Go to Prison at Rotten Tomatoes
  • Let's Go to Prison at IGN
  • Let's Go to Prison at AskMen

Fresh Links

Featured
Wes Anderson on Fox
Wes Anderson on Fox External Link

The director talks about puppetry perfection and his film, Fantastic Mr. Fox

Animated Oscar?
Animated Oscar? External Link

Hollywood.com ponders whether or not an animated film could win Best Picture.

TIME's Holiday Movie Preview
TIME's Holiday Movie Preview External Link

Richard Corliss previews the season's best offerings and hottest tickets.

Scenic Routes
Scenic Routes External Link

The AV Club's Mike D'Angelo airs his beefs with Alfonso Cuaron's Children of Men.

Promos
Follow RT on Twitter
Follow RT on Twitter External Link

Get the latest Tomatometer updates on upcoming movies!

 
 
About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Games| Celebs List| Newsletter
IGN Logo

IGN.com | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox | Planets | Vaults | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | Direct2Drive | Green Pixels


By continuing past this page, and by the continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
Copyright 1998-2009, IGN Entertainment, Inc. About IGN | Support | Advertise | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! IGN RSS Feeds
IGN's enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA
Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.