In the Mix

Heavy-hitting R&B star Usher apparently has a following, but they don't seem to be lining up for this lame vanity project that's being palmed off as a real movie. The fact that In the Mix was directed by the fellow who gave us The Adventures of Pluto Nash enters into the equation, though I doubt that too many Usher fans have concerned themselves with who directed him in his first starring role. Maybe they just smelled a stinker. They would not have been wrong. Star vehicles like this are hardly new. Even Bing Crosby's earlier films are little more than attempts to cash in on the crooner's radio and recording popularity, and it would be a kindness to pass over the bulk of Elvis' screen career. That is, it would be at any other time than when discussing In the Mix, which makes me long for the brilliant writing and emotional complexity of It Happened at the World's Fair. At least in Bing and Elvis' movies, the filmmakers let their stars do what they were known for - namely, sing. Here, however, someone got the bright idea that Usher (Usher Raymond, to give him his full name) should just act. Perhaps they should have determined whether he was capable of that feat first. Let it be said that as an actor, Usher would probably make a pretty good zither player.

And that's pretty sad, because I've seen a bunch of horrible movies, but this one is in a class of it's own. Now, I'm going to be honest, I wanted to see this film when it was first released in the theaters. It looked kinda like a fun movie, but I decided to wait until it was for rent. I knew this movie had a bad rating on IMDb, but I figured it was just because Usher was one of the biggest stars at the time and people were just trying to trash him. Boy, I apologize for doubting the views of the IMDb users.

First off, what was the screenwriter on when he wrote this? Or was he simply reading "Screenwriting for dummies"? What the hell does he or the director take me for?! I grew up in friggin' little Italy/Chicago! I'm not stupid. Now, not to sound horrible, but this movie was totally inaccurate on how a mafia boss would let an African American watch his daughter. Never would happen in a million years. Not to mention the horrible stereo types in this film! It was horrible. The two lovers had no chemistry and the plot was.... ahh! Just never see this movie ever ever ever!

1/10

After watching In the Mix, I can safely say there's no way this belongs on a list of the bottom 100 movies. Sure, the plot is lame, and Dolly spends the first half of the movie being incredibly naive about the danger she is in, and I was able to guess the movie's bad guy after his very first line of dialogue, but it's not that bad.

For those of you who are giving this one star and saying it's the worst movie you have ever seen, try watching some of the other bottom 100 films (particularly try ones that don't contain a non-actor celebrity trying to break in to acting) and you'll see what a bottom 100 movie really is.

I'm not a fan of romantic comedies but the odd mix of romantic comedy and crime drama makes the film more bearable.

Don't get me wrong, I don't think this is a good movie, but it's certainly not as bad as everyone seems to think it is.

Not Since Vanilla Ice's "Cool as Ice" and Britney Spears' "Crossroads" has such schlock been put to celluloid for no other purpose than take advantage of a pop music star's success and try to cash in on it.

At least Rob Van Winkle and Mrs. Spears can claim that it is not their fault the movies were bad, but instead the script was bad to begin with. Usher on the other hand gets Executive Producer credits for this gem.

In an interview he explains his role as executive producer...

"Well, I didn't put money behind it. That title comes from being involved in the creative process from choosing the people to act opposite, script supervision, selecting people who are a part of the production team. It's pretty easy."

Note to Usher: Executive Producing SHOULDN'T be Easy...

Maybe if you spent more time supervising the development of characters and plots, instead of supervising an onslaught of racial stereotypes and lines that serve no purpose but to praise your physical aspects, you might be able to star in a movie that will be in the top 8 at the box office in it's opening weekend.

Note to Self: Never trust the judgment of the person who dragged me to this ever again.

Let me just say that I was surprised when I saw "In the Mix" settling down in the Bottom 100. Surprised, but not in a bad way. I'm just glad that people see this movie as what it is, and not "how famous Usher is" or "how good we WISH this movie was"

Because, to put it bluntly, I went in the theater expecting junk, and junk is what I got. I don't think that there is anyone out there who expected great things from Usher, but I most certainly did not expect the worst movie that I have ever seen.

So, let's go over why this movie was so bad. Firstly, the acting is quite dreadful. Usher acts like a robot, and sometimes almost forgets to show emotion. Emmanuelle Chriqui is not half bad, and neither is the supporting cast, but Usher's artificial acting spoils all of their efforts. The plot is nothing original, but nothing incredibly awful. With some different acting, hey, I might actually be able to sit through 95 minutes of it without getting close to crying at the pathetic attempt at a movie.

So, here's what I recommend:

Don't watch the movie at all (unless you're one of those people who try to watch really bad movies just to see how bad they are)

If you MUST watch it, wait for it to come out on DVD, and rent it. Or wait for a stupid friend of yours to buy it, and borrow it. Make sure that you do not waste any money on this piece of junk. If you want what's best for you, spare yourself, and don't watch it at all.