gabrielle-witherspoon

The actor who played Herb Kincaid (father of the shredded Brady) was phenomenal - I don't understand why no one has commented on this. When he was talking to the local yokels and the sheriff in Owens Bar after Brady's funeral, his voice, the depth of emotion in his eyes - so filled with pain, anger and loss that I almost actually believed that he had lost his son to a brutal killer. He captured the part of a bereaved and inconsolable father as accurately as any actor could, especially the way he said "As for me, I think I'll go out and hunt up a little private justice." Such a small part but one that reflected what real acting is all about.

I think they should have explained how Marty became paralyzed - his Uncle Red hinted that Marty hadn't always been crippled when he said (I'm paraphrasing here), "Sometimes I think your brain must have gotten paralyzed along with your legs." It seems to indicate that Marty had suffered an accident that left him unable to walk and it made you wonder exactly what had happened.

I think the manufactured tension between Jane and Marty wasn't terribly credible either. Beside the usual sibling rivalry, there was really no reason that Jane should resent Marty so much and act like she hated him, saying "Marty was the cross I had to bear." If anything, it seems like she would have been protective of him since he couldn't get around on his own and shown a little understanding. It made her seem like a selfish little witch and she garnered no sympathy from me. I wish her mom had actually made good on her threat to "smack" her.

Like a number of people, I loved Uncle Red - he wasn't supposed to be perfect but he sure loved his niece and nephew. He's the type of guy I'd want to watch my back in a crisis - drinker or not, he was always there for them.

I'm sure we all know a sneering, arrogant little jerk like Andy Fairton (who somehow always got otherwise rational people to listen to him and follow him). I could see this character in a western saying "Let's string him up boys" before he even knew whether or not the person was guilty. I wish the werewolf had a bitten a sizable chunk out of his know-it-all ass.

His mean-spirited comments were pretty funny though:

When the sheriff said "We'll catch him." Andy said "You couldn't catch a cold." "This whole investigation is as f***ked up as a submarine with screen doors."

The sheriff was totally incompetent though. Why would he go to Rev. Lowe's house at night alone when he wanted to question him about murder and not have any back up. Instead of blasting the reverend when he started walking toward him in a menacing fashion, the sheriff stared backing up in fear and only pulled his gun at the last minute.

This is a rather uneven comedy but it definitely has its funny moments. "How You Doin?" was Rasputia's (Norbit's dreadful, fat, psychotic wife) signature line throughout the movie. The movie really stretched the limits of believability because there was really no reason for Norbit to marry such a grotesque bully (except the possibility that he was afraid to say no).

This movie actually made me uncomfortable - even though I tried to "lighten up" and remember that it was just a silly comedy, I couldn't escape the fact that Eddie Murphy's character was totally abused by his wife physically, mentally and emotionally. His life was a living nightmare. I won't spoil it by telling you the outcome, but I kept thinking that by the end of the movie Norbit would have evolved into a more self-confident, and smartly dressed character. He was such a punkish victim throughout the movie that it was hard to remain sorry for him. He made you want to slap him (although he had his share of that already) and tell him to be a man and stand up for himself. It was hard to believe that a beautiful woman like Kate would be attracted to such a weak, sniveling coward no matter what he looked like - and Norbit was not attractive at all.

"Rasputia" was like an evil comic book villain - nobody could be that vile. She never seemed like a real individual just a fusion of shallow stereotypes.

Eddie Griffin is hilarious as an ex-pimp and his lines are the funniest thing about this movie.

Can Terry Crews play anything other than a hulking, sadistic thug? The only time he played against type was in the movie White Girls.

Cuba Gooding, Jr. was wasted in this movie as was Thandie Newton (although she hasn't shown much in the way of actual talent in any movie she's appeared. She is beautiful but that is about it). Neither part called for any particular acting or comedic ability. They were just foils for Eddie Murphy's character.

Clifton Powell is becoming a stereotype too. I thought he had possibilities when he played Morris Chestnut's father in The Brothers, but his roles have gone downhill since then.

This wasn't a good movie and as I stated, only had funny moments. I don't know why this movie was made because there was no real point to it - just a chance for Eddie Murphy to once again, play 2 or 3 characters.