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Techtite's DVD Reviews! |
"Rough around some edges yet overall this is among the finest remakes I've seen in years." --from the review ------------- Sidebar :: ------------- In all the anti-racism, a little racism. Though I appreciated the lighter tone of this originally dramatic story, I would've liked some more interplay between Simon and his potential in-laws. At one inevitable moment the lid gets blown completely off the whole race issue, and I would've liked some broader defense of Simon's position in the matter than simply "I'm the white guy so obviously I'm the racist one here." Then again; maybe they didn't do this because they didn't want to make this into a drama. It's just one of those little things. ...
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Guess Who
Click picture to order this DVD A Review by TechtiteThe Film: Let's be candid: lots of bold concepts of "remakes" have been attempted lately, and most of them are not good. The problem seems to be the apparent need to "change" a classic story, but if that was so necessary what is the point of the remake? Yet never before has an opinion been so bold as to make a former drama into a comedy, and in the end turn out to be as entertaining as the prior film ever was. Guess Who --a remake based on the film Guess Who's Coming To Dinner-- is just such a comedy. The original story was as simple as it was daring back in the day: a family of "white people" are startled when their daughter brings her black boyfriend over for dinner. In Guess Who, the tables are turned with hilarious results. This time it's a black father, Percy (Bernie Mac), who must contend with his daughter's white boyfriend, Simon (Ashton Kutcher). What's more: the politically correct shoe is on the other foot. Would the original formula be any different if a white guy was asked to a black family's house for dinner...? I know a lot of people may say "Don't go there, boyfriend" to that comment but you'll be surprised how well this comedic film covers this little issue, albeit in a very lighthearted way. Mind you; this praise may sound surprising to anyone who saw the trailer. Yeah, big surprise; this is yet another comedy whose trailer doesn't do it a lick of justice. I was actually quite apprehensive to see this film based on a trailer whose jokes weren't so good. The film is far better, from the far wittier jokes not seen in the trailer, to the rather tender moment when Percy discovers the how and why to Simon losing his job, and having a man to man talk about it. This is not what I expected given the film trailers. That's great news. Yet what makes this comedy so effective is its simplicity. See; in the end, this is another simple tale of a father's need to let his daughter make her own choices. Race plays in the picture, of course, like when Simon is goaded during dinner into saying a couple of racial jokes, in an an attempt to "prove" Percy has a sense of humor about it. Yet in the end the truth is apparent; Simon would've been treated no differently had he been of any race at all. This isn't an issue of color as much as an issue of the overly protective dad who doesn't like his daughter's new boyfriend. In time he of course learns to like him, though by the time it gets to that point, Simon hasn't had it easy...in a funny way. I know some people even in 2005 may say it was too bold and daring to make such a racial issue into comedy, but admittedly the formula works extremely well, largely thanks to comedians Mac and Kutcher. Their interactions together are perfectly given, with each line delivered with perfect comic timing. There are about half a dozen ways this could've easily deteriorated into a simple comedy of "look at the white nerd trying to act 'cool' next to the black guy" and it's more funny than that. Yet in all the sugar-coating of the otherwise intense topic of racial issues is the obligatory little gripes. In order to have better delivered the message that race doesn't matter, it would've been more prudent to make Simon less downtrodden than he appears to be. Percy always seems to be in the "right" with Simon in the wrong. In a story about the issue of race, shouldn't their characters be of equal stature...? Percy is a successful man about to renew his wedding vows; Simon is the lovable loser who just quit his job, for reasons unrevealed until the finale. This not only makes the issue very one-sided, it also was a slight comedy flaw. Bernie Mac's comedic skills are very lightly used here, since the overall premise seems to be that his sole flaw is being an overly protective dad. This allows for far less comedy from Bernie than it should have. Yet overall this is a very pleasant surprise. This is quite frankly one of the best remakes I've seen in my lifetime, and I've seen quite a lot of them. In fact, most of remakes I've seen have been total flops, which makes it a very easy win for a film that's even slightly good. This makes it all the more surprising how well this remake works. There's any number of ways this could've been a chest-thumping bore at best or a racial joke cliché at worst. In the end, it's a fresh new comic look at an issue that was once strictly considered as drama. It's honest, sweet, and overall, fun. The DVD: Personally, I found this DVD to be like similar comedies on digital video disc; a lot of extras listed, but overall, the value is entirely in how much you loved the movie. I know it sounds weird but there are times that whether I buy the DVD of a movie depends on what "extras" i get for my buck. In this case there are a lot of extras yet it still seems like a "buy it only if you loved it" sort of deal. I'm just saying. Not that the extras are trivial. Yes there are seven deleted scenes, though nothing worth fully describing here. Yes there's a behind the scenes featurette. Yes there's an audio commentary, although not by any of the stars (all commentary is done by director Kevin Rodney Sullivan). Yes there's a gag reel, although as always by "gag" they mean that a line was flubbed here or there, which isn't funny unless the flub was actually funny. I'd be more surprised if you told me that they finished a whole movie in one take, which would just be weird. As I said: good movie, okay extras, even if there are, technically, "lots" of extras.
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