Duncan-Andrade said in his speach to the National Council of Teachers of English, ’’Hip-hop can be used as a bridge linking the seemingly vast span between the streets and the world of academics’’
’’Blaze up, gettin’ with hos through my pager.’’
’’I tell you it’s a cold world, stay in school.’’
’’You tell me it’s a man’s world, play the rules:
’’Fade fools, ’n break rules until we major.’’
’’Blaze up, gettin’ with hos through my pager’’
Last Week I saw the Movie called BRINGING DOWN THE HOUSE. It was release on March 2003 by Touchstone Pictures. Adam Shankman directed it. It takes a little over 1 ½ hours to watch it. In Canada it is rated PG 13.
THE STARS:
Steve Martin plays Peter Sanderson.
Queen Latifah plays Charlene.
Eugene Levy plays Howie Rosenthal who is Peter’s Friend and Partner.
Joan Plowright plays Mrs. Arness the rich British Lady.
Betty White plays the nosey neighbour.
THE CO-STARS:
Jean Smart, (Kate Sanderson Peters ex.), Kimberly J. Brown, (Sarah Sanderson), Angus T. Jones, (Georgey Sanderson), Missi Pyle, (Ashley) and Michael Rosenbaum, (Todd Gendler).
THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT:
Charlene believes she has been ’’frame’’ and was sent to jail for a crime she didn’t commit.
While she is in jail she reads a lot of Criminal Law Books. She realizes that she will never be able to have her Sentance appealed without having a real Lawyer help her.
To find one she becomes a Member of a Lawyers Chat Room. Charlene knows enough about Law to make the other Lawyers believe she is a Lawyer.
What Charlene doesn’t realize is that Lawyers specialize in specific areas of Law.
Peter is divorced and has a Daughter and a Son who lives with their Mother. He was suppose to take them on a Vacation to Hawaii but he had to cancel it so they ended up staying at his House. His Son can’t or won’t read.
THE PLOT:
Peter is a recently divorce Tax Lawyer. He has been using a ’’Lawyers Chat Room’’ and find a Lady that he likes to chat with.
Her name is Charlene and he thinks she is a Criminal Lawyer and has no idea she is an escaped prisoner!
She sent him her picture and he thinks that she is a thin white Lady, (she wasn’t lying because if you can see across the Street you can see her being arrested). She really is shaped like me, (rather well-endowed), African-American.
At first he doesn’t want to see her but she is shaped like me, (a larger well-endowed Lady), and is Afro-American.
At the time his Company is up against some stiff competition. They need to have a rich British Lady who is a billionaire’s Account. She is a very conservative and the only thing she trusts is her British Bull Dog. She has moved from Great Britain and is living in Athens, Georgia.
Charlene believes the only way she can get Peter to help her is to meet him. That is why she got out of Prison.
She phones Peter but he keeps telling her he is to busy to meet her.
Charlene never takes no for an answer and she goes to Peter’s House.
He comes home and sees Charlene at his door. He doesn’t believe it’s her because she is not the thin white Lady in the picture. He tells her to get out of his House.
The next afternoon when he comes home he finds that Charlene has invited everyone to his House to have a party.
Every one is rap-speaking, drinking, doing drugs and swimming in his pool. It’s quite a shindig!
When he tries to get rid of the dope he gets thrown into his pool. He yells at Charlene to get her Friends out of his House and keep away from him.
The next morning when he goes to get into Car to go to work the ’’busy body’’ neighbour from across the Street, (who happens to be his Bosses Mother), asks him if he heard some ’’ngers’’ having a party in the area last night. He shakes his head ’’no’’ and goes to work.
Charlene is there waiting for him. She gives him an ultimatum that he can’t refuse and he agrees that he will let her be his Son’s Nanny. He will also try to get the Courts to re-hear her Case.
To keep her away from Mrs. Arness he asks Howie to keep Charlene busy. He becomes enchanted with her and even learns to rap-speak.
How will it end? I’ll never tell because I don’t want to ruin it for the People who haven’t seen this Movie.
THE BEST PARTS:
1) Peter’s Son asking him, ’’Dad what a rack’’
2) Peter waking up Charlene, (she’s in a deep sleep), and not knowing where she is as says, ’’who dare’’.
3) Peter saying, ’’Did someone make a blind internet tape?’’
4) Peter trying to look younger by combing over the front of his fore head.
5) Peter pulling a sweater over his head without letting it touch his hair, (I didn’t know Men were that vain!)
6) Mrs. Arness smoking pot.
7) Mrs. Arness Bull Dog. I don’t know how they got him to do the things he did. His expressions were super.
8) Peter doing a break-dance routine.
THE SOUND TRACK:
Rap and Hip-Hop Music are the songs used in this Movie.
THE SCENES:
All of the scenes were filmed in the Houses, Streets and Offices in Los Angeles, California.
MY THOUGHTS:
I was sorry that there was so much racism in this film and wish they could have shown it in a different way.
I don’t usually like Steve Martin’s films but he was perfect for this role. Eugene Levy, (a Canadian), stole the show.
Queen Latifah could only play this role. She was very funny. It is very hard to be a Comedian but she is a great one now.
Kimberly J. Brown and Angus T. Jones, (who played the Children), were wonderful and talented.
Both Betty White and Joan Plowright were perfectly cast. You don’t see a lot of them but when you do the things the do will stay in your memory for a long time.
If you haven’t seen this film yet and want a few laughs I highly recommend this movie to you.
Comments are always welcome.
©LL2003