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When this movie is released on video, it deserves a spot in your permanent comedy collection, right alongside Eddie Murphy's Delirious and Richard Pryor Live in Conert.

I noticed that a lot of the reviewers at this web site weren't able to warm up to D.L Hughley's heckling of the crowd and Bernie Mac's no-holds-barred finale. Too bad. The brothas and sistas I was in the theatre with with were dying with laughter all the way through this flick, and ESPECIALLY when Bernie Mac was laying it down. His "example" of how a certain word (hint: the first part is mutha) can be used a variety of ways in casual conversation between fellas was brilliant because it was grounded in the truth. Go to any place where some self-styled playas are just cooling out: you'll see 'em capping on each other and cussing like pirates just like Bernie Mac. But just like Bernie's standup, it's all in good fun.

I love how the concert was staged so that the two old heads, Steve Harvey and Bernie Mac, emcee and anchor the show respectively. This was a shrewd move since these guys were the most experienced and therefore just a little more adept at working the crowd to a fever pitch. DL Hughley was his usual wisecracking, crowd heckling self --I counted at least 8 people that he absolutely nailed :-)-- and Cedric unleashed his rapier wit and off-the-wall dance routines that, one point, had me laughing until my stomach hurt. Cedric has always represented St. Louis well and I'm already seeing folks out on the street repeating his classic bits in this movie verbatim.

I reiterate: this ain't just a good concert movie. These four titanic talents provide the sharpest, frankest, and most outlandish comedic insights into black culture and mannerisms to date. Pryor would be proud.

In the 30s and 40s, there were no shortage of excellent romantic comedies. Of course, it helped that Hollywood legends like Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart, Katherine Hepburn, and Jean Arthur were still in their prime. Dave is a throwback to those old school soap operas, and Reitman and company pull it off with gusto.

Replace Stewart and Arthur with excellent modern actors Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver. Introduce classic but loaded premise: Good-natured do-gooder, who also bears a striking resemblance to the President, is forced into impersonating him when the latter becomes incapacitated. The problem is, the President is a scumbag and his wife hates his guts. Sit back for two hours and enjoy the fireworks. Be sure to lookout for the scenes where Dave visits the children's home and where the president's wife discovers Dave in the shower -- Jimmy Stewart himself would have been proud of the performances.

I have nothing against pushing the envelope in the American cinema, but too often filmmakers are so hell-bent on making the "next big thing" they ignore the timeless qualities that got people interested in movies in the first place: engaging story and characters you actually care about. Dave fits the bill and then some.