| BARBERSHOP Rating:   Director: Tim Story Writers: Mark Brown, Don D. Scott, Marshall Todd Producers: Robert Teitel, George Tillman, Jr., Mark Brown Director of Photography: Tom Priestley Cast: Ice Cube, Sean Patrick Thomas, Keith David and Cedric the Entertainer Visit the IMDB Page for full cast and crew |
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Review by: Ryan
Kugler
9/04/02
I usually have a hard time going into a comedy after seeing its trailer, because I know that nine times out of ten, I'm going to come out disappointed. The first problem is that the job of the trailer is to sell the film and in order to do so, they tend to give away the best gags and lines. The other problem (and one of my biggest pet peeves) is when I'm watching something and the only laughs generated are from the scenes shown in the trailer. I always think to myself, haven't these people seen this gag or heard this line at least ten times before? It can't still be funny, can it? Luckily, in the case of the new ensemble comedy Barbershop, the opposite is the case. The trailer for the new Ice Cube movie did nothing for me, as it doesn't really contain any significant laughs. It actually looked quite awful. Now that I've seen it, I believe that the trailer completely undersells the movie and does it a real disservice. I found it to be smart, immensely entertaining and probably the funniest movie of the year so far. Maybe the studio made the decision to hold off on sharing the best lines so others would come out feeling the same way that I did. I'm know that I'm giving MGM the benefit of the doubt, but whatever their reasons, it worked.
Cube stars as Calvin, the confused owner of a Chicago barbershop that he inherited from his father. He's tired of the daily grind and wants to do something else with his life. The only reason he keeps the shop open is because it's what's expected of him and what his father would have wanted. Calvin's employees include Jimmy (Save the Last Dance's Sean Patrick Thomas), the righteous barber who schools his clients and co-workers on a myriad of subjects, Ricky (Michael Ealy), a two-time felon trying to stay on the straight and narrow, Terri (rap superstar Eve), the lone female employee who puts up with a lot of crap from her male co-workers, Issac (Troy Garity), the token white guy that tries a little too hard to fit in and Eddie (Cedric the Entertainer in the funniest performance), an old-timer who has worked at the shop forever.
The film takes place during one full workday and more than half of it unfolds inside the shop. It's a great pleasure to watch this hugely talented cast interact with the clientele and each other. The dialogue is witty and hilarious and most of the subjects discussed and debated are timely and involving. The funniest scenes are when Eddie and Jimmy get into heated arguments over such African-American figures as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks and OJ Simpson (granted, it's a tired subject, but the material is handled in a fresh and funny manner).
All of the scenes inside the shop are priceless and I only wish that the filmmakers trusted their cast and dialogue (written by Mark Brown, Don D. Scott and Marshall Todd) enough to stay on the day-in-the-life track. There's no real reason to even leave the shop (though I did like the touching scene where Calvin goes to the local liquor store for a drink and ends up sharing some kind words with its owner) and the movie certainly doesn't benefit from two lame subplots that take up far too much screentime. The story involving the two bumbling idiots that steal an ATM machine is initially funny and their escapades are amusing, as the two seem to hit every one of Murphy's Laws, but there's no need to go back and check up on them as much as we do. I also wasn't too concerned with Calvin's dilemma about weather or not he should sell the shop to local mobster Lester (Keith David), a pimped-out 70's looking tough guy straight out of a Jack Hill (director of Coffy, Foxy Brown and countless other Blaxploitation movies) flick. These unnecessary subplots take us out of the daily routine of the barbershop, a place that's more real and interesting than what's going on outside.
Although is takes a few missteps (nothing too damaging) and would have benefited from keeping it's focus a little tighter, Barbershop is a lot of fun. First-time feature director Tim Story and his cast have made an entertaining slice-of-life movie that's hard not to enjoy. Most importantly, it's really funny and not a single one of the best lines were ruined in the trailer.
(An MGM release. Opens wide on September
13)
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