Who's the Man?

Come on, people! This is when hip-hop really started to appeal to the masses, and if it's dated, then so am I! This film has moments that make the entire experience worthwhile. There are some jokes that are still genuinely funny, and the "message" continues to be timeless: do good by people and do good by your neighbors and your neighborhood.

If you are at ALL a fan of hip-hop (hell, I'm a white girl from the midwest, so if I call myself a fan, I should think that everyone who ever drew breath has to be *something* of a fan), you're going to enjoy this one, if for no other reason than the innumerable cameo apperances! You can see some favorites who have sadly left this realm (Run DMC), or those who started in hip-hop and found their way to the Academy Awards (go ahead, Queen Latifah!). And this is where I might be dating myself a bit, but has hip hop been as good since these days? I put this DVD on and find myself rump-shakin throughout the house. Yeah, I might have mentioned -- white girl from the midwest. :)

American Beauty this ain't. But if you want some giggles on a Friday night, and it's a cheap rental, I can't say a bad thing about this flick. It makes me wish "Yo! MTV Raps" was still on the air, and that's one helluva statement.

What a fantastic movie! Wow! I loved, loved, loved this movie!

If there was ever a movie that was built for the dollar theater back in the day, this was it!

What an incredible concept and amazing, pretty much flawless execution on film.

The late director Ted Demme. His touch on this is masterful.

It's dang near an action film. Very similar, a close relative to New Jack City, which is from this same glorious era in movies and I also adore much the same.

I remember seeing the videocassette box of this in the video store and just thinking it was some silly urban comedy, because that is how they literally packaged it, but it is so much more than that.

Yes, it is funny, but make no mistake, this sucker is gritty too.

I love it.

Funny and gritty.

Old school New York.

Rappers playing normal roles of normal people. Unannounced cameos.

It's so great.

Most of today's youth wouldn't even realize these dudes are rappers.

And Denis Leary and Colin Quinn.

Bernie Mac too?

This movie rules!

And all from the director of Beautiful Girls?

Who knew?

Not me!

But I definitely know now.

Who the Man is!

Cards on the table: I'm an old white guy. I don't know Dre or Lover.

I like some slapstick, and some I don't. For your reference, I never much cared for Abbott & Costello or the 3 Stooges, but I love Laurel & Hardy and the Marx Brothers. Dre & Lover got lots of personality and good humor. Love watching their comedy routine -- the best part of the movie.

Ice-T has a small part, must be one of his first on the screen. Would like to see him in bigger parts; he's on TV a lot lately and he's an interesting actor.

The closing credits are playing to some hip-hop. The lyrics use the "N" word, but it occurs to me that I don't remember hearing it in the movie's dialog. It's the end of 2006 and it's finally going out of style, but avoiding it 13 years ago was a touch of class.

I've got Cinemax playing on the TV. The next movie is coming on, which they rate "MV" for Mild Violence. If I were to rate "Who's the Man," I wouldn't give it any violence rating. A gun was waived around menacingly, once. Otherwise, they're too busy having fun. Bring the kids. (Apparently, the professional movie-raters disagree. Maybe society has changed a lot in 13 years. Either that, or professional movie-raters are fuddy duddies.)

Anyone who is a fan of Dr.Dre and Ed Lover would have certain expectations for any film from the duo. "Who's the Man?" far exceeds those expectations.

And if you are a fan of music or rap in general it is still brilliant. If you are not a fan of any of these things then its brilliance is lost on you so go and watch Gone in 60 Seconds you ignorant fool.

"Who's the Man?" funny, silly, creative, relevant, full of cameos, and includes an impeccable soundtrack (including a complete performance of Naughty By Nature's "Hip-Hop Hooray"). I give credit to Ted Demme, it takes balls to direct a spoof with a straight face, but that's just what he did; and, for the most part, he succeeded (although some jokes do fall flat). An no film has ever gotten so much out of cameos. Everyone who was on MTV in the early 90's was included in this film (except for the disappointing exclusion of Jon Stewart). Over 50 hip-hop stars, and Colin Quinn, Dennis Leary, Kurt Loder, Bill Bellamy... This is movie belongs in the same company of A Hard Day's Night, Purple Rain, Gimme Shelter, High Fidelity, and The Commitments as a movie that perfectly blends film and music. A true cinematic achievement.

"Who's the Man?" is a very easy watch. It's a funny movie. It has a good story and it's filled with a lot of funny characters. It has a great running time (85 min) and a lot of good music. Ed Lover and Dr Dre are really funny together. If they were allowed to make a few more movies, they may have joined the ranks of the great comedy teams. Unfortunately, we'll never know. Everyone else in the cast is good/very good. Jim Moody and Denis Leary are two of the stand-outs. I should watch "Who's the Man?" more often. Honorable mention: the final shot.