'The Funniest Man In America'? (Down to Earth (DVD))

Member Name: Cwej1

Product:	Down to Earth (DVD)
Date:	06/03/02 (40 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Really really can't think of any, Oh the maid is quite amusing

Disadvantages: Crap script, Crap acting, Crap film

'The Funniest Man In America' proclaims the front cover of romantic comedy 'Down To Earth'. They aren't referring to Jerry Springer. They aren't even referring to George Bush. No, they are referring to Chris Rock, who unfortunately in this film comes across as about as funny as an episode of Crimewatch.

Rock plays Lance, a failing stand-up comedian who is killed by a bus. Unfortunately, the film doesn't end with his death, but instead he complains to the managers of Heaven (Chazz Palminteri and Eugene Levy) that he doesn't think he should've died yet. They check their records and realise that Lance wasn't meant to have died and tell him he can go back to Earth in the body of another person to live the rest of his life.

Horror of horrors, Lance ends up in the body of a middle-aged, white, fat millionaire, and promptly starts dating the woman (Regina King) that he happened to fancy when he was on Earth in his original body.

In all honesty, the plot does not sound that awful, but the execution of the story into a movie is possibly the most awful 90 minutes of tripe I have watched this year. The script is so lacking in wit that I literally sat there open-mouthed at the shocking suggestion that this film was a comedy.

The acting was overdone by all. Chris Rock's monotonous (and shockingly ego-tripped) monologues are too fast to even let the viewer comprehend what he is saying and even when you can work out what is being said, it isn't funny. He overacts just about every scene, right from the very first one. Regina King, as the leading lady, is a good actress, but she just seems totally aware of how lame her script is. The believability of a young attractive woman like her falling in love with a man 25 years her senior, who she doesn't even agree with on anything, is so non-existent that it inadvertently brings about the only laughs of the whole film - for the sheer implausibility of i
t all.

The direction doesn't work either. When Chris Rock is driving to a club with his butler he starts singing and rapping along to hip-hop tracks in his car. This would very possibly be (slightly) funny if we were seeing a 55 year old man doing it, but we're not. We're seeing a 25 year old black man doing it, so it's not laughable in any way. If the film wasn't one huge ego-trip for Chris Rock, it could have been much funnier by having an older actor, (say Michael Caine, or someone like that), in the role of Lance when he comes back to life.

In short the film is a diabolical mess. Overacted, badly written and the unfeasible plot could be forgiven if it wasn't for the fact that the script just isn't even funny anyway. At 86 minutes long, it is 86 minutes too long.

Summary: