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.

This film was so funny back in the day. In their first film, Ed Lover & Dr. Dre are hilarous as bumbling cops trying to slove a murder. The film is full of hip hop cameo's and is a semi classic when it comes to hip hop themed films mainly for the cameo's.

This movie was basically a poor excuse to put a lot of rap stars on screen. It was the biggest compilation of hip hop artists in a movie since Krush Groove or House Party. I guess they figured if they had enough big, well known names they wouldn't need to have a good story nor would they have to worry about anyone's acting ability.

There were legitimate actors thrown in there as well: Dennis Leary was one but he was horrible as the exaggerated police sergeant. Bernie Mac and Bill Belamy were also in it but they were there strictly for one-liners and coordinated zingers that I'm sure they hoped would catch on to become pop buzz-phrases like, "You got knocked out!" and other such phrases.

It was cool to see all of the various artists I know and loved when I was a teenager. A few of the iconic artists are now dead (Heavy D, Guru, Jam Master Jay, one of the Chrises from Kriss Kross, Bernie Mac, and maybe others). But gone are the days when I could be simply awed by my favorite artists and consider their movie good. I need substance, content, or at least quality laughs. This had none of that.

African-American comedies have always appealed to me. Movies like HOUSE PARTY, CLASS ACT, and DON'T BE A MENACE TO...... After seeing movies like I GOT THE HOOK UP and FRIDAY, I started to lose my feel for them. But I was going through my video library and came upon WHO'S THE MAN?. The movie had some down right funny jokes, fast paced, and good music. It was also interesting to see an all-star hip-hop cast. Give this one a try.

Nobody makes me laugh like Denis Leary so when I first heard about this movie, I was dying to see it. I kept trying to rent it at the video store, but every time I went, it was checked out so I gave up trying to get it for a while. A few months later, I caught it on TV and I laughed my butt off. Although Denis Leary wasn't in it as much as I would have liked, I loved it. It instantly became one of my favorites despite all of its flaws. The cast is great, especially Doctor Dre and Ed Lover in what are sadly their only starring roles to date. The supporting cast, which consists of some of the coolest people ever, is great as well. I thought there was a good chance that this movie would really suck, but I was wrong. This is a classic 90s film. Movies like this just aren't made anymore. ***