PG-13, 1
hr. 48 min. Directed by: Keenen Ivory Wayans. Release Date: June 23, 2004. DVD Release Date:
October 26, 2004.
People are going to go nuts when I report that I love this
movie, but in my defense, I don't love it in the good way. The only
reason this didn't get a much better overall score from me is because I'm very aware that
this isn't to everyone's taste. In fact, it's almost to no one's
taste, and I'm always surprised how funny I think this movie is. I'm
not a huge fan of the Wayans brothers, well, at least not since In Living
Color went off the air. God, did I LOVE me some Homey the
Clown. I liked Scary Movie, and then there was a long, cold winter
of discontent between that and this. There have been no other serious
contenders for my attention in the Wayans' careers.
Does the movie have problems? Yes, and a host of
them. For some inexplicable reason, both Wayans have the same out-of-regs
haircut and earrings in during their duty as FBI agents. While they might
have the same 'do in real life, I'm fairly sure it would have been a little
more conservative and a little less... Ja Rule. The earrings definitely
would have been out. I'm also not thrilled that a lot, and by a lot, I
mean nearly all of the humor, is based on stereotypes. Strangely, not
just stereotypes about white women, but about black people, the nouveau riche,
and just about everyone they could get fit in to the tale. Stereotypes
can be funny for shock value, but if that's all you got, there are
problems. The story is also an issue. It's starts off fairly
creatively, but the "investigation" changes gears so frequently that
you have to wonder how these guys close any cases.
This movie is made almost entirely by its support cast,
specifically: Jennifer Carpenter, Jessica Cauffiel, and Busy
Phillips. This was a very different role for Jennifer Carpenter, who I'm
mostly familiar with from her work on Dexter. This time, she's not
a tough-as-nails, semi-masculine cop, but she is almost the exact
opposite. She's feminine, almost stereotypically so, insecure, and
fragile. In this movie, she was kind of sexy, and very funny. Her
scene in the changing room at that boutique was nothing short of
hysterical. She may have to call me along with Queen Latifah and Drew
Barrymore.
I do think this is funny, but it's the kind of funny that
I'm embarrassed about. I shouldn't be laughing, but I do. I've seen
this maybe half a dozen times since it was released on video, and it never
fails to crack me up. The dialogue is pretty mindless, but there are a
number of sharp one-liners and zingers that keep me going. Even the
Wayans brothers aren't terrible, which is a unique phenomenon in their film
careers... at least together.
If you might get offended over stuff, or get bent out of
shape because you were offended; skip it. If not, maybe check it out some
time. This is quick, mindless, and easily digestible. There are
worse ways to kill time.
