Undercover Brother Review
by Ishmael Williams

Spring and summer are always interesting movie times because a lot of light fluff gets released. Sometimes itÕs really bad fluff. Okay, mostly itÕs really bad fluff. But every once in a while, a surprise comes along. Getting right to it, I really liked this movie, as it turned out to be much better than IÕd expected.

Take some Get Smart, add a dash of hi-tech gadgetry, throw in some action scenes that are just fun to watch, a sprinkling of kung fu magic (mostly Bruce Lee references) and you have this movie in part. Eddie Griffin plays the title role, and looks like he has much fun doing it. He is an afro-sporting (and I mean AFRO), super-cool undercover agent for an organization called The B.R.O.T.H.E.R.H.O.O.D., an Acronym whose meaning I do not believe we ever found out (as if it was really important). The B.R.O.T.H.E.R.H.O.O.D. has dedicated itself to bringing down ÒThe ManÓ, an entity whose face we never see, but who himself seems devoted to keeping black people from succeeding.

Sounds like a recipe for a not very PC film, and this one is a long way from being PC. While I never found any of the jokes offensive, iÕd say some of them flirted with the edge of bad taste without ever crossing the line. Were there stereotypes? Oh, a plenty, but they are not stereotypes in the classic sense, but rather stereotypes of how movies have portrayed them over the years. The title character is uber-cool; the people at headquarters are typically really smart-but-overweight (and yet i think there were maybe 2 fat jokes) computer nerd, the paranoid black guy (in my neighborhood, we all knew at least one), and the oh-so-stereotypical head of the organization who blustered and yelled and yet appreciated his team of agents.

But there is oh-so-much-more. The movie in part examines the ÒblacknessÓ of people from the ÒhoodÓ, and what is perceived as the way they change and why. It shows what happens, in the perceptions from inside the culture, of what happens when someone Òsells outÓ, as in no longer connects to their roots and their inner blood. As the movie treads what is sure to be ground thatÕs going to make many uncomfortable, it still manages to do so with respect, for the most part. It was easy for me to look at the characters and recognize people from my youth. Heck, I am one of the people being portrayed on the screen.

But beyond itÕs underlying examination, this is a fresh and deeply funny movie, with moments of open-mouthed brilliance. give it four beakers, taking one away because it will make people uncomfortable in some not so nice ways.

Undercover Brother

Four Beakers
(out of five)

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