Double Take

I watch virtually every movie released to video and I love it when I dont expect a movie to be as good as this one was. If you like the humor of the classic 1987 movie "Real Men" movie with Ritter and Belushi and if you liked the comic attitude found in "Blue Streak" then this is definitely a movie you will like. With the two actors Orlando and Eddie not being known as an infamous comic duo I certainly would have thought after seeing this movie that they have done this together before. I found many possibly subtle parodic similarities to movies like The Silver Streak and Stir Crazy which although you might think im out of the ballpark on this one, I couldnt help but to laugh my butt off! The directing was professionally witty and the writing was smarter than most any movie that is currently available for rent. I can only say that there is a bright future not only for these actors in comedy roles and that I am astonished that this movie has been created out of a 1957 screenplay. It definitely has been perfectly formulated to work in the current setting in which it was portrayed. Bottom line is that I highly recommend this movie to anyone who loves a sleeper comedy mixed with some well thought up schemes. Maybe those of you who are fans of violent humor in the the british-heist movies such as Snatch and Lock Stock And Two Smoking Barrels will relate to the mixture of violence and comedy as well here. And I want to know if anyone else caught the clear irony between the pen scene in this movie and the pen scene in the movie Real Men. Tell me that wasnt inspired by a great movie! Watch this movie! If you pay attention.. you will laugh!

Me and my wife went to see this movie after seeing the hilarious previews for about a month before it came out... and we were not disappointed! It turned out to be a bit of 'Rush Hour', 'Bad Boys' and yeah maybe even 'Blue Streak' and any other buddy/buddy movie you may care to mention all rolled into one. True, it wasn't better than any of those three, but man Griffin and Orlando are certainly a double act to look out for in the future. Hilarious situations complemented by high profile action and a neat (if sometimes confusing) plot help to buoy the movie along at a frantic pace. But it's the performances which are the real jewel in the crown and Griffin (last seen, if I remember correctly, in 'Deuce Bigelow') and Jones (wasn't he in Armageddon?) are REAL good together, so much so that I kept telling my wife Misty that they MUST have acted together before on TV or something because they really act well off each other. The funny scenes are numerous, with the stand out ones being the malt liquor scene on the train and the running gag about that guy's cross eyes. Mark my words, though... Griffin and Jones are most certainly two names to look out for. Go see and judge for yourselves!

Apparently some people DIDN'T like this movie, but its hard to see why. While certainly not destined to become a film classic, the miscellaneous plot holes are CERTAINLY no worse than most Hollywood fare, and as an overall movie I think rates a whole lot better than a lot of what's cranked out these days (2006). I REALLY enjoyed this movie, as did most of the other people who I have persuaded to watch the DVD, which I purchased after seeing the movie in the theater. JOnes and Griffin are both in great form, with the edge definitely going to Griffin's thoroughly brilliant comedy throughout. A great buddy movie, with great performances and production values, thoroughly entertaining, and very, very, funny. If you don't mind a movie that's not too cerebral, doesn't take itself too seriously, and doesn't aspire to be anything more than a thoroughly enjoyable comedic romp (with more than a few twists and a fair amount of action along the way), then you'll appreciate this. I don't think Mr. Gallo was aiming for an Oscar with this one, but it was completely satisfying for what it was. Incidentally, the music score and soundtrack were also remarkable.

I wasn't expecting a whole lot from this movie. The trailers that I'd remembered seeing were pretty funny, but I'd assumed that those were the best parts of Double Take. Anyway, I watched it nonetheless and didn't think it was half bad. There were several parts not included in the trailer that were laugh-out-loud funny. Some might be offended by the fact that Griffen's character is (in the filmic sense) a "coon." Although nowhere near as good a comedy as Blazing Saddles, it is comparable in certain aspects. Double Take could be considered racist, but like Blazing Saddles, it uses racial stereotypes to emphasize the stupidity of their existence. Here, instead of black vs. white, we see upper-class African-Americans ashamed of the Sambo stereotype, and thus not associating with other African-Americans with lower social status. I'm not sure if this message was intentional in Double Take, but it was there nonetheless. Orlando Jones had a pretty good performance and Griffen was a convincing character (some might say he was over-the-top, but again I'd say this was essential). One problem was that the movie quite suddenly switched gears from a comedy to a somewhat serious action/suspense flick. I felt the heavy emphasis upon the latter took away from its comic moral message and made the movie shallower. So, it had potential. They could have recruited a few more writers to add in funnier jokes. All in all, a 6 out of 10.

Director George Gallo penned MIDNIGHT RUN, one of the very best action / buddy-buddy pictures ever to have graced our screens. More than ten years on, and this feels like an ill-advised and incredibly anaemic imitation. The lead characters here are marginally appealing, but as the script races on at breakneck speed and virtually collapses under the number of twists, they are given precious room to develop and engage our sympathies. It all feels so very daft and inconsequential in the final analysis. A time-filler at best, but in the context of MIDNIGHT RUN, also a considerable letdown.