Pootie Tang

This movie is so unique, it may be as difficult for some to understand as it is to figure out Pootie's language. I was captivated from the first scene right up to the end. Kudos to Lance Crouther for his truly inspired performance as the hero. His physical comedy while combatting his foes or even just interacting with everyone else was brilliant and quirky. You really find yourself focusing on him in every scene, just to see what he was going to do next. There is also the ensemble of actors that inhabit Pootie's world, all of whom did a great job. I often read critics making comparisons between the modern charactor actors and how they pale before those of the distant past - razzz - wrong! These people hammed it up with style and flair. "I'm Dirty Dee, dammit!"

Sah da tay, my brothers.

I'm more into classic drama and the epic scene, but when I do get into a comedy it has to be absolutely senseless. I don't want to see any formulaic structure from the drama side of things crossing over - which a lot of Holly-comedies have - it has to take on its own form and the Chris Rock produced "Tang" does that. The cheese fact is a perfect 10 on the scale and the creative powers that be told this story with precision. I believe this will be a cult classic, not to mention it far out played "Undercover Brother" which was released on a healthier production and marketing budget that same year. Chris Rock should be proud of his producer role and Lance Crouther was the funniest black-man stereotype I've ever seen. Finally, I remember going to a Blockbuster a few years back with some friends to buy the DVD, it was such a cult hit that some kid had stole the disk and left the DVD jacket on the for sale shelf... That says something. True stupidity is an acquired taste which only few can actually understand. And I would bet a few Franks that comedic geniuses are serious people 90 percent of the time. But when they let loose, look out.

It's criminal, how underrated this movie is. It's inspired on so many levels, and the encyclopedic knowledge of action films, hip-hop videos, 70s blaxploitation and chop-socky movies is breathtaking. I always think of it in the same class as THE JERK and ZOOLANDER, with a healthy respect for flat-out absurdity and non-stop gags. The filming style is rough, and the actors generally have no polish (an undoubtedly deliberate choice), which makes the sudden flashes of precision so devastatingly funny. Wanda Sykes, in particular, is absolute gold as party girl Biggie Shorty, but the film's full of co-stars - Andy Richter, Dave Attell, Jennifer Coolidge, J.D. Williams, Missy Elliott, and Robert Vaughan - who get their turn on the silliness carousel. I can imagine someone who isn't a fan, or at least an observer, of the above things would hate this movie like poison, but for me, who has seen more Jay-Z videos than I ever wanted to see and who can't help laughing when I see a man use kung-fu to bounce bullets off his hair (a gag too complicated to explain, but seamless on screen), POOTIE TANG is fantastic.

I'd recommend it more, but it's just too hard to describe!

For those of you put off by the comments below, of which a large percentage are rather negative, well don't go see it. If some of teh good revies below don't make you want to see it either, don't go see it. I'm not surprised Pootie Tang isn't a big hit, but don't expect it to fall off the face of the earth. It probably will, for about ten years, but then it'll be back.

My rationale behind this is that this movie is shades, more than just shades, it's practically a sequel, of the ridiculous Rudy Ray Moore movies of the seventies, including Dolemite and Disco Godfather. In the former, Moore played Dolemite, a successful standup comic (Created in his own standup act) who is also a pimp and crimefighter in his spare time. Pootie Tang is a character created by Louis C.K. with actor Lance Crother, who is a successful hip hop artist, who is also a ladies man and a crimefighter in his spare time. See what I'm talking about?

There are more similarities. Each film is low budget, and often quite amateurish. Both films are made by people who obviously don't have all the mechanics of filmmaking down (Dolemite's boom mike pops into shots so much it might as well have gotten a supporting cast credit, Pootie Tang features possibly THE WORST narration in the history of film). Both also have quite a bit of social satire, plus additional humor derived from the sheer stupidity of the filmmaking.

Pootie Tang is, in itself, a bad idea for a movie. Who wants to watch 80 minutes of a character who speaks in gibberish? It's a joke that's funny for 3 minutes on the Chris Rock Show, but grows very old after an hour and a half (The audience I was with was hysterical...for ten minutes. Eventually half walked out). There are some jokes that work (I liked Pootie's new hit single, and also the tense climactic standoff between Pootie and Dirty) but a lot of other material doesn't (Cameos by Andy Ricter and David Cross are totally wasted). Plus the movie doesn't know if it's a movie, a movie clip, a friend retelling something, or what. It has a bad sense of pacing and flow (Using little Batman-esque cut scenes to break stuff up) and at least a dozen head-scratch-inducing moments.

For all of these reasons, the movie will be back. Mark my words. People a decade from now will watch this movie and laugh at its lame bits, and also the smart ones. For the average viewer, it's not worth seeing. For the devoted follower of movies that are bizarre, inexplicable, and just plain silly, it might be the best out-there movie of the year.

"Pootie Tang" is the ultimate guilty pleasure film. Sometimes I ask myself, "why do I laugh at this?". I don't know why, but it funny as hell. Chris Rock is a genius. I don't know how you come up with a story about a funny talking super hero. Throughout the whole movie, this guy is saying things that doesn't make any sense, but the characters surrounding him all understand. How do you come up something like that?!? And put it into a feature film!!! One liners like "sa da tay" and "sine your pity on the runny kine", are classics. "Pootie Tang" was conceived on the HBO hit The Chris Rock Show, in this spin off movie, Pootie is trying to take all the junk food, drugs and alcohol off the street that is being distributed by Dick Lecter (Robert Vaughn). The supporting cast includes The Chris Rock Show regulars including Wanda Sykes. "Pootie Tang" seems like a send up to 70's blaxpoitation films, but at the same time, I don't know what it is. "Pootie Tang" is a mixed bag of funk music, cheesy action and comedy. It all works for "Pootie Tang" making it the most unusual film ever made.

Pootie Tang- rated PG-13 *** out of ****