|
Bringing
Down
The House
Finally,
we have a comedy of the type long since forgotten, where you
can poke fun at stereotypes without being foul-mouthed. It's
racy (not racist), but not foul-mouthed. In another rarity,
not all the funny scenes got crammed into the trailer. Bringing
Down The House is funnier and better than it looks.
Peter
Sanderson (Steve Martin) has just split up with his wife Kate
(Jean Smart) and has found a friend or nemesis in Charlene,
who he met on the Internet.
Little
does Peter know that Charlene is not the woman he expected
her to be. Instead of a fellow lawyer, she turns out to be
an ex-con and Queen Latifah. She tries to get Peter to help
her expunge her record, and start life with a clean slate.
Unfortunately for him, Charlene will not take no for an answer.
Instead, she threatens to make Peter's life hell, and for
Peter, "…fun is hell."
Almost
everything that happens at the beginning is totally expected,
yet still manages to be funny. Though a few harsh racial remarks
and scenes exist, the laughter outweighs the gasps of surprise.
At least, you hope this isn't a reflection of reality.
Steve
Martin leads the way, clowning in a role much like Father
of the Bride. Juggling moping about his ex-wife, the struggle
to make up time with his kids, a multi-millionairess he is
trying to impress, and trying to get rid of Charlene, Peter
comes across as a put-upon shlub we still root for. And he
still manages to get ghetto and play the additional cool boy
in the hood. Sort of.
As Peter's
best friend, Eugene Levy is nothing short of hysterical when
trying to seduce Latifah with hip-talk. Unfortunately for
the veteran comics, Latifah steals most of the show once she
steps onto the screen.
Whether
it's her sharp intellect, naughty nature, or sweet personality,
all of it plays well against the rest of the cast.
Unfortunately,
the film underuses Betty White. For the Fanboy Planet connection,
Smallville's Michael Rosenbaum makes an appearance
in the movie also, but should probably keep the bald look.
He doesn't quite pull off a goofy bad guy. Oh, to be typecast
so young…
On the
whole, Bringing Down The House does fall a little short.
Stereotyping the uptight rich American elite as racists leaves
Martin's character as apparently the only one with a conscience,
or perhaps he's meant to be an average Joe that happens to
be really smart and have a lot of money.
The story
also makes an odd intro with the two on the chat room. It
felt like they were talking for several weeks, if not months,
instead of the few days the plot claims. This plays out later
when authorities come looking for Charlene. Her boyfriend's
take on the situation and how it all comes together in the
end doesn't quite fit in the grand scheme of things, really
undermining the punch this movie needed to make it memorable
for more than the ride home.
The funny
thing is they kept talking about Charlene's case almost to
remind us it's still there lingering in the subplot somewhere.
Maybe I was too busy thinking of all the other stuff that
it didn't register, and that could be a plus.
What's
It Worth? $6
|
