Hollywood Shuffle

Starring:Gregory 'Popeye' Alexander, Sena Ayn Black, Conni Marie Brazelton, Sarah Kaite Coughlan, Starletta DuPois, Marc Figueroa, Sean Michal Flynn, Dom Irrera, Anne-Marie Johnson, Craigus R. Johnson, Lorrie Marlow, Helen Martin (II), David McKnight, Lisa Mende, Don Reed, Brad Sanders, Ludie Washington, Keenen Ivory Wayans, Kim Wayans
Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

The alumni of Hollywood Shuffle are spread across dozens of current comedies and TV sitcoms--this is the movie that introduced Robert Townsend and the Wayans Brothers to the world. Townsend plays a young actor who struggles with being offered stereotyped street hustler roles while trying to maintain his self-respect and the approval of his family. Between scenes of comically humiliating auditions, Bobby has satirical fantasies about the plight of black actors, including the classic "Black Acting School" sketch, in which white teachers demonstrate jive talk and street moves for the befuddled black students. Townsend has a charming, low-key comic style, one considerably more subtle than that of some of the black comics who have risen to success with supposedly self-aware renditions of the stereotypes Townsend mocks. Townsend made this movie on his credit cards and it is clearly a heartfelt labor of love. --Bret Fetzer

Description

The best example of urban guerilla filmmaking is ironicallyand happilyalso one of Hollywood'smost triumphant success stories. Actor Robert Townsend (I'm Gonna Git You Sucka!), decrying the lack of good roles for black actors, puts his money where his mouth is and co-scripts (with Keenen Ivory Wayans), directs and stars in this "exuberant, tirelessly energetic, funny, appealingly mean-spirited and easy-to-like" comedy (Janet Maslin, The New York Times) that took Tinseltown by storm! Actor wannabe Bobby Taylor (Townsend) dreams of landing a role any role. But in a town where the best black roles are usually jive-talkin' gangsta stereotypes, Bobby learns that you have to make your own partseven if they're just in your head. Spoofing everything from Michael Jackson's "Thriller" and Eddie Murphy to Siskel & Ebert, Bobby's vivid imaginationand Hollywood Shuffleare "an exhilarating blast" (New York)!

Customer Reviews:

Go Jheri, Go Jheri, Do Da Jheri Curl!!.......2006-11-27

This has got to be the funniest movie I have ever watched, and the fact that Townsend put so much into getting it made makes me appreciate it even more. While the film touches on a very important subject concerning the downfalls of being a black actor, it still manages to keep the humor alive and strong. Highly recommend this film to all aspiring actors and all those who just love a good laugh.

Side splitting comedy!.......2006-10-16

This movie is hillarious from beginning to end.I remembered seeing this movie on cable almost 20 years ago, and was delighted when the DVD finally came out. Despite the few haters that trashed the film, the movie was all about comedy, so lighten up! It's ok to laugh sometimes, we all need a good laugh every now and then. To all of the haters, you gets the finger!

Classic comedy!.......2006-03-20

I love Robert Townsend and wish he would do more films and tv shows. This movie is as funny as it was years ago when I first saw it!

He understands the laws of GRAVITIVATEE and POLARITY!.......2006-01-08

Hollywood shuffle is pound for pound, the best comedy of all-time. It was made on a budget of seventeen dollars. Each actor plays an average of 7 roles. The very idea of white acting coaches teaching black actors how to act black {"jive turkey (...)!"} is brilliant. Chapelle tapped into the same vein when he dreamed up his blind black white-supremacist sketch. 'Night of the living Street Pimps' inspired many a halloween costume and Keenan Ivory Wayans as Jeri-Kurl is the funniest (...) ever, period. This movie is brilliant on so many levels and there's nothing else that compares to it. It's a nice history lesson for anyone who wants to know what 1987 was like, when the only rap on Mtv was Run-Dmc and LL Cool J. Watch it with some ho-cakes, a winkie-dinkie burger, winkie-dinkie donuts, winkie-dinkie dip and of course, a winkie-dinkie DAWGGGG!!!!!

There ain't nothin to it but to do it........2005-09-11

Was this a comedy or was it a drama? I begin this review by asking this question because the film that I just witnessed, Hollywood Shuffle, was neither funny or rather dramatic. While it tried so hard to make a point, because of this lack of definition (comedy or drama), the clever themes and pointed remarks were lost. While I am a strong believer that there is too much racial profiling happening in Hollywood, even today, I do not believe that Townsend's directorial debut did much to stop it. Instead, I feel it only added more fuel to the fire. Townsend's comic timing in this film was disastrous due to the fact that the elements he was supposed to be making fun of, he was instead promoting and vice versa. The parts that were supposed to be serious were somehow destroyed by the poor lack of funny comedy. Townsend had a decent concept with this film, but sadly the execution is what ultimately hurt this film. If you watch the preview before the film (which I constantly do), you will immediately get the wrong impression of what you are going to see. The preview gives the impression of a very intelligent, comic film that prides itself on the intelligence of the viewers, but the actually film could not be further from the truth.

The main problem with Hollywood Shuffle is not story itself (because it is lacking in elaboration); it is Townsend's direction. He had a wonderful concept with this film. Exploit the Hollywood that exploits our race. Decent idea, but why couldn't he execute it very well? The first reason is that his ideas are too random and sporadic. The structure of this film was like watching a heart attack on a monitor at the hospital, we are literally everywhere without any warning or map. It was obvious that Townsend had quite a bit to say, but only a short amount of time to do it in. So, instead of defining his characters, developing his themes, and actually creating a smart film, he just throws it all together and prays that it works. Sadly, it doesn't. Instead of a smart comedy, we have a hodgepodge of so many ideas, comedic skits, and underused actors that this film goes from decent to nearly unwatchable. What hurts Townsend the most are his brief, attempt to be funny, interruptions throughout the film. From battling a villain known as Jerry Curl to parodying Siskel & Ebert, Townsend's attempt to poke fun while speak a message about the film industry falters. This is because these small intermittent skits actually distract from the central focus of the film and actually destroy internally. While Townsend seems to be trying to make a joke about life in Hollywood, he actually is simply connecting to every stereotype and cliché in the book. What could have been beautiful satire transforms into simply generic humor that never quite stands apart from the rest.

So, if you find yourself not laughing at the humor of this story, perhaps there is some comfort in knowing that some of the Wayans brothers are around to help spice up this dull story. WRONG! The Wayans are in this film, but Townsend demonstrates that he has the ability to even bring the worst out even in this entertaining family. Definitely in their pre-In Living Color moments, we see that comedy was something that all needed to constantly improve upon. Perhaps it was Townsend's direction, or just maybe this atrocious story, but these typically funny comedians were obviously underused and ignored when it came to critics of this film. I just thought that with the talent pool that Townsend had to pull from that Hollywood Shuffle would have been funny, bright, and a true stab at this obvious Hollywood dilemma. Sadly, it was none of the above.

Finally, I would like to say that this was a workable film. There were some moments (while they were few and way far between) that had a smile on my face, the final product just didn't settle well with me. Townsend can be funny, but in this film it just felt like he was playing against himself, instead of through his personal experiences and troubles. I realize that he was probably speaking the truth, but it never came through as that. Instead, we are threaded through a weak story, which supports itself with idiotic flash clips that may have worked for a sitcom, but surely didn't work for this film. Even for those that comment that this was his directorial debut and that he was learning from this film, I would have to disagree. If you are starting fresh, either have a tight script or defined themes. Townsend had neither of these, and combined with the inability to control his actors, he just failed in a ball of flames.

Overall, this was rather disappointing to watch. It reminded me of a grade school Spelling Bee where it is finally your child's time to spell. The word is tough, but as the first two to three letters come out, you think that it is going to work perfectly, but then there is that random "P" and silent "R" that forces your excitement to come tumbling down. That is how I felt with Hollywood Shuffle. At first, I saw the potential, I saw the theme and the motive behind the picture, but through fuzzy and inexperienced technique and after the first couple of scenes, I experienced that deep fall feeling. Townsend sank his own ship on this one, and I don't think Hollywood Shuffle will ever re-submerge as a pivotal moment of Hollywood cinema.

Grade: * out of *****

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