Barbershop

When I first saw the plot and cast for this movie I was filled with little hope that this film would be any more than a stereotypical look at black/urban culture with the characters rhyming words for supposed comic effect ad the scriptwriter fitting a screenplay around the jokes. It us easy to forget that the film's protagonist, Ice Cube (who gave a fine performance) had just come off making the awful 'All About the Benjamins' which fell into the trap of so many of these comedies based around black people. Added to the fact that 'Barbershop' was released when there had been a spate of these sub-standard pictures such as 'How High', Friday After Next' and 'State Property', you can understand why I approached this movie with no expectations.

Thankfully I was proved wrong as 'Barbershop' followed a simple structure to work. It had solid direction, a commendable screenplay, was well acted but more important than any of that, it was a story worth telling and that is the one thing that good films have in common. However, this does not mean that this movie followed the conventional ways of Hollywood and 'sold out' to appeal to a mass audience. If anything pleased me most about the film it was the fact that it retained a true sense of representing the black community and credit for this goes to the high standards of dialogue and acting. People who live in the suburbs can watch in the knowledge that they're getting a window into another culture, while people in urban communities can watch this with a comforting sense of familiarity. Another reason for this is that the screenplay is informed enough to not 'pigeon hole'. The characters are well rounded, with both positive and negative traits and the movie is not surrounded by guns,single mothers and drugs. This is not not to say these issues are ignored, as they are connected with one the film's major plot strands but despite the mass media sterotype (to which not all black people are unaccountable) the 'ghettos' of America are primarily filled with honest, hard-working people who just trying to make the best of an unenviable situation. While previous urban films have made a point of blaming 'whitey' and 'the man' for the troubling issues surrounding black people, 'Barbershop' looks closer to home and encourages black people to take responsibility for themselves and to break away from nature of 'frontin' that is slowly paralysing urban communities. One of the films best quotes is 'Dont buy yourself a Benz when your living with your mama! And black people; please can we be on time for something other than free before 10 at the club'. I think this is a wonderful statement and it encourages black people to reject the notion of style over content as that is what the film does as well.

Added to this the well-rounded nature of the film is a diatribe from Cedric The Entertainer (who's performance is almost as hilarious as his stand-up act) about black icons such as Rosa Parks, Jesse Jackson and Martin Luther King. This is probably the most provocative section of the film and initially made me question the validity of these icons but after reflection, it made me realized that even Martin Luther King was a human being with flaws but that doesn't take away from his legacy. Regardless what's been said about Jesse Jackson he's still the first black man to run for President and nothing will ever take that away from him.

While Cedric the Entertainer took most of the acting plaudits, this was a great ensemble piece that was well acted all round. My only gripe is that why can't other films of this nature stay true to black culture but also have a cinematic soul

An uneven but mostly entertaining comedy/drama, "Barbershop" stars Ice Cube as Calvin, the owner of a neighborhood barbershop that has been passed down in his family through the generations. Of course, it's more than just a barbershop; it's a cornerstone, where you go to laugh with friends and find out what's happening in the neighborhood. Unfortunately, that doesn't pay the bills, and Calvin, tired of barely scraping by, decides to sell the place to a local loan shark (Keith David).

The movie covers the events in and around the barbershop on the day Calvin sells it, changes his mind, and spends the rest of the day trying to get it back, along with several other sub-plots involving other characters in and around the shop (the most interesting being played by Cube and Cedric the Entertainer, both terrific actors).

Whenever the movie stays in the barbershop, it's usually a lot of fun, with some good, entertaining dialogue and witty interplay between the many characters (both barbers and customers). However, the film frequently cuts to an annoying and mostly unfunny sub-plot about two bumbling crooks (Anthony Anderson and Lahmard Tate) trying to break into a stolen ATM machine. This is almost entirely unrelated to anything else in the film, and even though it connects with the main plot at the end, it still feels like dead weight that could have easily been entirely cut from the movie.

This is a good movie, full of heart and worth checking out just for the performances by Cube and Cedric, as well as the good tunes on the soundtrack. It just has a few too many dry stretches and the irritating ATM sub-plot, which holds me back from whole-heartedly recommending it.

The first thing I have to mention is that one day, I don't know when, but one day Michael Ealy, who plays Ricky, is going to be a major talent. He has an incredible relationship with the camera. He has charisma that you cannot learn in all the drama workshops in creation. He has authentic charm. He does not overplay his character and believe me, it would have been easy to go that route. I've recognized some talent before they became stars, and this guy has it. I could not take my eyes off him for a second. I think a star is born.

Eve is also very good and has a future in movies if she wants one. If she could just keep track of her damn apple juice.

Cedric makes the movie. He's the heart of the movie, the center, and hilarious to boot. I watched this movie three times to make sure I didn't miss any of his dialogue. I've seen MUCH worse performances receive Oscar nominations, and its a real injustice that he was ignored. He's just great.

For an old timer like me, it was also nice to hear The Staple Singers over the closing credits, too.

On the other hand...Ice Cube does not register more than one emotion, the sub-plot w/Anthony Anderson and the cash machine is unworthy of the rest of the movie, and Keith David, who I normally love, is terrible.

This review is not as mixed as it may appear to be. I rated it an '8' mostly cause of Ealy and Cedric. I may not be seeing "Barbershop 2" anytime soon, obviously not because I didn't enjoy the first one, but because I don't support or have interest in sequels. They're not worth the time and all the producers are really saying is that they had an idea, did well with it, now want to exploit every good feeling you had about the first one. Almost no movies require a sequel anyway.

Likable, engaging story about the day-to-day operation of a black barbershop in downtown Chicago. The plot centers around Calvin Palmer, an average Joe but promising young barber who inherited the family-owned shop years earlier from his late father and his attempts to save the shop from foreclosure, even if it means agreeing to an offer from a miserly neighborhood loan shark. Cast is appealing and enthusiastic, the story interesting and well-intended, but it's let down by bickering characters, uneven comedy, and a few distracting subplots. A decent way to pass the time, and a good change of pace for lead actor Cube, but it's never quite as on target as it needs to be. **½

I thought this was a pretty decent flick. I laughed out loud at least twice, which is OK, because this film is not really supposed to be hilarious, just sardonic, mostly. Cedric the Entertainer was good, but not truly believable as an elderly man. Ice Cube turned in a quite good performance. In some of his previous films, I had thought he was pretty good, but rather one-dimensional. ("Anaconda" "Three Kings") Here, he definitely extends his acting range enough to be taken seriously. And wherever the one-named "Eve" came from, she nailed her character. There's a lot more to this movie than the controversial lines from Eddie (Cedric). It was interesting to see some black characters be aware of, and concerned about, the pathologies in the black community. But I guess this is spoken of only in barbershops, or elsewhere away from whites. Overall, definitely worth a look. Grade: B+