Movie Review

Guess Who

"Bringing Down the House,? 2003's big hit debacle, was a movie that dealt with race by having Steve Martin dress up in baggy pants and Enyce, spouting out the awful grammar of a bad rapper. It basically bathed in its own stereotypes. The best I can say about "Guess Who,? a loosely based comedy on "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner,? is that it doesn't go for such easy and cartoonish characterizations of real people dealing with real racial issues. The worst I can say is that the film isn't very funny, and that besides for one scene where Ashton Kutcher's Simon is forced into saying all the racial jokes he has ever heard by Bernie Mac's Percy, the racial elements seem pretty tame.

Mac plays Percy, a bank loan officer in the midst of renewing his vows to his wife of 25 years. Only Percy is more puff and bluster than lovey-dovey. Kutcher's Simon is a much more affectionate guy. He would rather dance than play sports, and he is very much in love with Percy's daughter, Theresa (Zoe Saldana). When Percy hears about Simon, a hotshot on Wall Street, he is expecting a young Denzel Washington. Only when Theresa and Simon arrive for the party, he is at first sidetracked by the black cabdriver, and then less than amused at the truth.

Percy is immediately convinced Simon is no good for his daughter, and uses every ounce of his seriousness to intimidate the poor boy. At one point, he even has Simon admitting he was a driver for Nascar's Jeff Gordon. Simon immediately realizes that he is in over his head, and the fact that he has just quit his job on Wall Street only makes matters worse. "Guess Who" continues down the "Meet the Parents" pathway, developing into a cute buddy movie, and in the last third, a sweet romance. It's lighthearted and audience-friendly, but that doesn't mean it's good.

It's too bad because both Mac and Kutcher have good chemistry here, Mac being the DeNiro to Kutcher's Stiller. Only they have to rely on chemistry alone, whereas DeNiro and Stiller had decent setups for comedy. A scene Mac and Kutcher share in a car in which Mac flips the radio station but continues to get songs depicting white and black characteristics (Ebony and Ivory) is funny primarily because the two have established the right amount of tension. Mac knows how to tear into people with his eyes and Kutcher proves effective in not only playing someone intelligent (wow!), but also lovable and willing to please.

The situations they find themselves in are ordinary and clich?, though. They always involve one guy trying to one-up the other guy in gags that completely miss the mark. They race go-carts, and in what comes across as more creepy than funny, Percy sleeps with Simon to stop him from getting upstairs to sleep with his daughter. Also, when they sleep together they come in contact with one another, and that's the big payoff of the movie. How many more times is Hollywood going to find this funny?

"Guess Who" should be saying more about racial differences than it actually does, and in a much funnier way. Instead, this film is just a watered down diversion. The filmmakers make it too lovable to hate but also too lovable to achieve anything more. The writers behind "Meet the Parents" should be very proud ? they have redefined how America deals with race.

Craig's Grade: C

A	10.9%
B	41.8%
C	31.8%
D	15.3%
F	0.3%