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Post by Return of the Thin Olive Duke on Dec 9, 2015 23:28:59 GMT -5
NorbitDir. Brian Robbins Premiered February 9, 2007 How the hell did we get here? Like Epic Movie, I hesitated to watch this movie, making sure my roommates had all left for Thanksgiving before popping the DVD in. And like Epic Movie, I wasn’t really in a position to discuss this film’s importance. It’s become a cliché that Eddie Murphy’s career post-1988 has been “revenge” for some award snub or other; that he was once the biggest star on the planet, the top comedian in a decade when comedians were bigger than rock stars, and that those days are never coming back. But I’m mostly unfamiliar with Murphy’s filmography, even the good ones. However, Norbit does have an important place in the history of Hollywood: it marks the point at which bad comedies became a genre unto itself, with its own tropes, visual style, and cadre of anonymous directors. In the case of Norbit, that director is Brian Robbins, who went on to direct Murphy’s zero-percenter A Thousand Words. If the leaked Sony emails are anything to go by, studios don’t want to make these movies. Why they have to is unknown. Norbit (Eddie Murphy) is a simpering, lisping 1950s-style nerd who spends most of his life in an unpleasant relationship with the hideous gangland princess Rasputia (also Eddie Murphy). This is extremely weird as both Norbit and Rasputia are also played by child actors free of any affectation, so when Rasputia eventually becomes preening, hateful, adulterous, and abusive, it comes right the fuck out of nowhere. Murphy also plays Norbit’s horrifyingly racist Chinese adoptive father. When Norbit’s childhood sweetheart Kate (Thandie Newton) comes back to town with her fiancé (Cuba Gooding Jr.), he tries to leave Rasputia, only for Rasputia to lie about being pregnant. Sparks fly between Norbit and Kate, leading to... you know what, fuck it. The movie doesn’t care. I don’t care. With it’s CG pratfalls, cringe-inducingly racist humor, lots of flat jokes at the expense of overweight children, I was totally prepared to unleash my fury on this film, but the whole is so empty and flaccid that I can’t care. Watching this, Murphy seemed like he was being held hostage to make this movie, but on closer inspection I discovered that he and his brother Charlie wrote the screenplay. I don’t know why anyone would write this, but it’s reavealing in how Murphy views the world and himself. Maybe. Fuck this movie. Also in Theaters:- Even for the dregs of Winter, this was a bad weekend, with the only other new film being cheapo-cash-in-prequel Hannibal Rising.
Additional Notes:- Sign this was made in 2007: The Pussycat Dolls and Kelis’ “Milkshake” are prominently featured. Two characters are pimps and it’s no big deal. Pubic hair is depicted as inherently disgusting and undesirable. Actually, this movie seems to be set in 2005.
- “Yes, Mr. Wong very racist. I no like brack. I no like Jew either. But brack and Jew love Chinese food. Go figure.” Pointing out the fucked-uppedness doesn’t make this a commentary.
- Genuinely Funny Person Terry Crews is in this. And as so often, he deserves better.
Next Time: Bridge to Terabithia
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Post by The Prighlofone on Dec 9, 2015 23:36:20 GMT -5
You unwittingly put "Fargo" rather than "Norbit" in the title, most likely because of the Shoutbox conversation about "Fargo".
Also, I'm thankful Terry Crews has a steady career now.
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Post by Return of the Thin Olive Duke on Dec 9, 2015 23:37:17 GMT -5
You unwittingly put "Fargo" rather than "Norbit" in the title, most likely because of the Shoutbox conversation about "Fargo". Also, I'm thankful Terry Crews has a steady career now. I'll be real with you: I'm drunk.
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Post by Return of the Thin Olive Duke on Dec 13, 2015 23:39:07 GMT -5
Full disclosure: Netflix decided to be a dick and make me wait for Bridge to Terabithia. Just looking now, they've decided to extend it to "Very Long Wait" and short-waited three of the next four movies I was going to review. In light of that, I'm just going to review them as they come. Once Bridge to Terabithia arrives, I'll start posting them. Don't be surprised if there's a sudden glut of these.
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Post by MarkInTexas on Dec 14, 2015 13:54:43 GMT -5
Pretty much the entire cast of Norbit deserved better than Norbit, even Eddie Murphy, who I'm guessing thought this might be another Nutty Professor, only to realize at some point that, no, it would not be. But really, the cast of this movie is excellent: Murphy (who had just been nominated for Dreamgirls when this opened--there's a lot of people who think that this movie is the reason we now can say "Academy Award winner Alan Arkin", but I digress), Newton, Gooding, Crews, Eddie Griffin, Katt Williams (as the aforementioned pimps), Marlon Wayans (who seems to be in the film primarily to show off his bare butt), even Kristin Schaal. That's a lot of talented and funny people in this extremely unpleasant film.
Getting back to Murphy, this film seemed to have broken him, since other than the various Shrek-related movies and TV shows, he's done nothing but high-concept junk since this. Meet Dave (he's a human-sized spaceship run by tiny aliens!), Imagine That (his daughter's imaginary friends give him career advice!), Tower Heist* (let's rob Bernie Madoff!), and the aforementioned A Thousand Words (he has to stop talking or he dies!), all of which flopped badly. To be fair, he has two upcoming projects that could be decent: the biopic of Richard Pryor (where he plays a supporting part), and something called Henry Joseph Church, which could easily be Oscar-bait glurge, but even Oscar-bait glurge can be pretty good on occasion.
Oh, I should also mention that, by cruel twist of fate, this is actually Academy Award nominee Norbit, for makeup. It lost to La Vie en Rose.
*to be fair, Murphy was easily the best thing about Tower Heist, a film that I actually had pretty high hopes for, even knowing it was directed by Brett Ratner. Once again, lesson learned.
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eldan
TI Forumite
Posts: 800
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Post by eldan on Dec 27, 2015 16:08:57 GMT -5
I watched Norbit to impress a girl who liked it a lot. The fact that I actually found myself enjoying a handful of moments in it really taught me a lesson about how easily influenced I am by girls.
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Post by Return of the Thin Olive Duke on Dec 27, 2015 16:59:16 GMT -5
I watched Norbit to impress a girl who liked it a lot. The fact that I actually found myself enjoying a handful of moments in it really taught me a lesson about how easily influenced I am by girls. I think you're alone in that one. When I was six, I straight up turned Murphy's Nutty Professor remake. I say that as someone who semi-enjoyed The Pantom Menace three years later and owned Final Fantasy: the Spirits Within. And that's also the film that always gets held up as what Norbit should/could have been!
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Post by Superb Owl 🦉 on Feb 11, 2016 17:32:00 GMT -5
Pretty much the entire cast of Norbit deserved better than Norbit, even Eddie Murphy, who I'm guessing thought this might be another Nutty Professor, only to realize at some point that, no, it would not be. But really, the cast of this movie is excellent: Murphy (who had just been nominated for Dreamgirls when this opened--there's a lot of people who think that this movie is the reason we now can say "Academy Award winner Alan Arkin", but I digress), Newton, Gooding, Crews, Eddie Griffin, Katt Williams (as the aforementioned pimps), Marlon Wayans (who seems to be in the film primarily to show off his bare butt), even Kristin Schaal. That's a lot of talented and funny people in this extremely unpleasant film. Getting back to Murphy, this film seemed to have broken him, since other than the various Shrek-related movies and TV shows, he's done nothing but high-concept junk since this. Meet Dave (he's a human-sized spaceship run by tiny aliens!), Imagine That (his daughter's imaginary friends give him career advice!), Tower Heist* (let's rob Bernie Madoff!), and the aforementioned A Thousand Words (he has to stop talking or he dies!), all of which flopped badly. To be fair, he has two upcoming projects that could be decent: the biopic of Richard Pryor (where he plays a supporting part), and something called Henry Joseph Church, which could easily be Oscar-bait glurge, but even Oscar-bait glurge can be pretty good on occasion. Oh, I should also mention that, by cruel twist of fate, this is actually Academy Award nominee Norbit, for makeup. It lost to La Vie en Rose. *to be fair, Murphy was easily the best thing about Tower Heist, a film that I actually had pretty high hopes for, even knowing it was directed by Brett Ratner. Once again, lesson learned. Remember when Tower Heist was going to be this thing that brought back 'good Eddie Murphy'? Craziness.
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Post by Desert Dweller on Feb 12, 2016 23:01:25 GMT -5
I think there is some merit to the idea that this movie killed Eddie Murphy's Oscar chances that year. He was favored to win before the nominations were announced. The nominations were announced, then Norbit came out. And then he didn't win.
Sure, could be a coincidence. But..... my God, why would you let this movie open right after you had been nominated for an Oscar?
Edited to add: He also reacted very badly when he lost at the Oscars, which may have helped to sour his relationship with Hollywood.
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