Undercover Brother

  I don't know how to write a good comedy review without adding in spoilers. But as many of you know I refuse to put any type of spoiler in my reviews if possible. So that is my goal and I hope this review is informative and doesn't spoil it too much for ya.


This is one of my favorite comedy movies. It makes fun of the tension between blacks and whites in a light hearted manner. It does two things that make it stand out. First it makes fun of both nationalities equally. At no point do the jokes make me nervous or uncomfortable. I don't feel they went overboard with any of the issues and kept it tasteful. If you want a comparison take Blazing Saddles for instance that I think went much further in the offensive department.


I think the reason they were able to do this is because everyone is a stereotype. This is not a movie about real people going through real and life altering scenarios. There is no tear jerking moment. No truly uncomfortable scenes (just some minor uncomfortable scenes). I think because of this it ended up being a well done movie that the masses can enjoy.


The plot
The plot is simple, an organization comprised mostly of black individuals is trying to infiltrate and destroy "The Man". "The Man" on the other hand is trying to keep "black culture" from destroying our "culture"(whatever his view of culture is)


The characters divided
The movie has three parties that interact in the film. The first is "Undercover Brother". He is a black martial arts "expert" (not really, but he thinks he is) that goes undercover to protect the poor or those that cannot protect themselves. He is the good guy that wants to be a hero to the people. He also has a big ego and thinks everyone is in love with him.


The second party is an undercover operation composed mostly of black individuals and headed by many stereotypes such as "smart brother", "conspiracy brother", the mean and demanding boss, etc. They are a secret organization that is out there to stop the man from taking over the country.


The third party is "The Man" and his underlings. This is the white organization whose goal is to keep the black man down. They hate that "black culture" has infiltrated our "pure and superior" white society. This organization is there to do whatever it takes to keep whites in power and keep the black man down.


Who directed this?
Before I get much further I want to point out that Malcolm D. Lee directed this film. I applaud him for taking a risk. I also remember from a commentary or something that he said if we are going to make this movie then we need to go as far with these exaggerations as possible. He didn't sugar coat it or play it safe. I appreciated this and the film just would not have been that good if he held anything back. I believe it is one of those things that if you are going to make fun of something you have to go all the way or not at all, Malcolm understood this.


The acting
The acting is great. These characters are not playing real people, rather characterizations. And they play them will (with good direction I assume.)
The lead is played by Eddie Griffin, the exaggerated hero type that works alone and wants to solve all his problem by himself (typical male pattern no matter what the race). He also plays the "stud" and goes after anything in a skit (or really tight pants). I love the way he played it, over the top; and he did he job well.


The other star is Chris Kattan. He plays an evil henchman for "The Man". Sadly he is a person that is in conflict between the two cultures. The culture of the conservative old man and the culture of the super hip. It is hysterical to see him revert back to the two personalities like a man with a multiple personality disorder.


The third person I am putting on the list is Aunjanue Ellis playing sistah Girl. She does a marvelous and is the true co-star of the film. She plays off Eddie like oil plays off water. And it works. Her acting make Undercover Brother seem even more off the wall than he would have been normally. Her job as an actor just made Eddie look at much better.


Denise Richards plays Penelope Snow/White She Devil. She is the eye candy in the movie and does a good job at acting like the stupid white girl. She becomes the love interest to undercover brother which leads to some of the funniest parts of the film (mayonnaise anyone?). Denise does an excellent job in this film and is a pleasure to watch....as an actor of course.


The story and writing
The story is pretty simple. I have very little to say. There are no twists, no interesting concepts, no humanistic issues, just a boring story to get us from beginning to end.


The writing on the other hand is fantastic. They did an awesome job of making this movie flow and making it funny at the same time. The jokes were a combination of simple to complex and very well thought out. While not as funny as other films, it just that the jokes made sense, weren't awkward, and were timed well. I give the writers high praise.


The character development
Since these are stereotypes, not a lot of character building takes place. It give you just enough to know who the characters are. The one great thing about character building is that most of it is done through action, not dialog. This is the way I think character building should be done and I am very please with how they did this.


The pacing
The pacing isn't perfect, but pretty close. I'd give it a 9/10. I would have sped up or cut some of the film personally but I have no real complaints


The special effects
No real special effects. Just some casual explosions and motorcycle flips.


Replay value
I'll watch this every 2 years or so. So I give it a high replay value.


Should children watch it?
No because many of the concepts may go over their heads. There are also some adult references. I'm also concerned with young kids that are confused between make believe and reality. If your child still believes in the Easter bunny, then don't show them this movie.


Genre: Comedy


The key players
Director: Malcolm D. Lee
Screenplay: John Ridley, & Michael McCullers
Music: Stanley Clarke


Ratings
Yahoo users: C+
Yahoo critics: B-
Metacritics users: 76%
Metacritics critics: 54%
Rotten Tomato: 76%
RT community:54%
My score: 4.67


MPAA rating: PG-13


Running time: 89 minutes


Year Released: 2002


My End Line.
As of this writing, this is my 5th favorite comedy. It does it for a number of reason but the most important is the writing. They didn't hold back, didn't worry about offending anyone, they just focused on a comedy. And I think they succeeded. In a country where it can take itself too seriously at times, I think it is nice to laugh at the stupidity of it too.