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Amazon.com Alicia Silverstone was so hot after the success of Clueless that she formed her own production company at the age of 19, and Excess Baggage was the first movie she chose as a starring vehicle. Silverstone plays Emily, a spoiled rich girl who has everything but her father's affection, so she decides to stage her own kidnapping to see if dad will come to his senses and appreciate the daughter he so blindly disregards. But when Emily locks herself in the trunk of her own car, she's surprised when the car is stolen by Vincent (Benicio Del Toro, from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas), a professional car thief whose partner (Harry Connick Jr.) has misplaced $200,000 of the Mob's money. Christopher Walken stars as Emily's "Uncle Ray," who's hot on her trail as she goes on the lam with Vincent. It's not the meandering plot that matters so much as the funny dialogue between Silverstone and Del Toro, who steals his scenes with a smoky mumble and easygoing charm. This one is mostly for Alicia fans, but the film has got enough good laughs and low-key appeal to make it a home-video sleeper. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more Reviews (40) 
Fantastic the second time around.
"Excess Baggage" is the type of movie that failed at the box office due to poor marketing. With the combination of Alicia Silverstone in a lead role and a trailer suggesting that this was mostly a comedy, I think a lot of people went into this flick with a wrong impression. I know I did. The first time I saw it I was rather disappointed. There was nothing inherently wrong with any performance or any facet of the movie itself. I think it was more that it wasn't what I expected. Luckily, I decided to let some time pass and view it again. I'm very glad I did because this is actually a solid movie. The role of the bratty rich kid was, of course, perfect for Alicia and she didn't have to stretch much to properly play the part. Benicio Del Toro was simply amazing! His mannerisms for his character are something you simply can't be taught. Del Toro is the real deal and you can't help but fall for his charm...even if he is playing a car thief. It goes without saying that Christopher Walken is flawless as usual. The guy's been around forever because he is one of the best acting talents in Hollywood. The story certainly has some amusing moments and situations. However, this is a story that's actually about love, loyalty and knowing your place in the world. By all appearances, Alicia Silverstone and Benicio Del Toro would make quite the unconvincing couple. As the movie progresses, however, you are truly moved by the bond that they form. "Excess Baggage" is a very special film that deserves an open mind and a keen eye for amazing acting and appreciation of a multi-layered storyline filled with deep moments.
A quirky, fun, dark comedy.
I don't understand why people hated this movie so much. Ithought it was well written with an amazing cast and some surprisinglycute, funny moments. It's not like anything else I've ever seen, but maybe that's why some people didn't like it. If you're expecting some cute, fluffy formula film this isn't it. Try a Julia Roberts movie (snooze). But Silverstone holds a solid lead role, a crusty cry from her usual material, and Del Toro is definitely a phenomenon waiting to be noticed. He owns every scene he's in, not just because of his looks, but because of his pure talent and unusual line readings. He's one of the most gifted, original actors I've seen in a long time. Nicholas Turturro and Harry Connick, jr. also add a nice surprise to the mix, with Connick's geeky but funny car thief and Turturro's tough guy act. Of course Walken can always be counted upon to add a welcome sense of eerie comedy and I enjoyed this so much I've rented it twice. It's subtle, intelligent humor and that may only appeal to a select crowd, but I'm glad movies like this manage to sneak by and get the green light once in a while. If you have a brain and like understated humor and unconventional romance you should like this film. If nothing else, it offers a chance to watch some enormously talented people strut their stuff. If this is indicative of what she wants to add artistically to the world of film, I welcome her future work.
DVD Worse Than The Actual Film
...and that's saying an earful. We all know Excess Baggage was a bad movie, case closed. THE THREE STARS ARE FOR BENICIO ALONE!!! No one else mattered to me. DVD could have given it new life if the manufacturers thought to give us more bang for our bucks. I HATE plain DVDs! Why do some movies have loads of special features while others are just the VHS version on a disk? There were no special features whatsoever on this DVD. There was only one version of the film...full screen. I don't mind full screen but I would have liked to have the choice of both like most DVDs. The scene selection part is stuck in dinosaur land. You could only go in one direction which meant you had to go through the entire movie to get to the scene you wanted. I wouldn't have bought this DVD if I wasn't so smitten with BDT. He's the only thing in this film worth watching because we all know Alicia Silverstone's never been front-screen material.
Wonderful Film with 5 star Wide-Screen Anamorphic Picture
Won't try to compete with other folks saying good things about this wonderful film, but wanted to confirm that the DVD received from Amazon.com in January 2004 is a superb transfer with full screen on one side and gorgeous Anamorphic 16:9 widescreen on the other. Watching films on a widescreen television is the coolest! Be aware it's necessary to tell your DVD player (in the set-up menu) to format for a 16:9 screen. This automatically outputs any anamorphic DVD as full-screen (without black bars top and bottom). This will look tall & skinny on an old-fashioned 4:3 monitor, but when stretched to fill a wide 16:9 screen it looks glorious!
charming,witty a wild ride!
hold on to your hearts as car thief Del Toro foils Silverstone's"kidnapping" and ends up with more than he bargained for in this sweetheart of a movie!
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