Soul Men (C- or 1.5/4 stars)
2 retired backup soul singers, Floyd & Louis (Bernie Mac, Samuel L. Jackson) who have not spoken to each other in 20 yrs. agree to travel across the country together to a reunion concert to honor their recently deceased, & much-more-successful lead singer in 'Soul Men', directed by Malcolm D. Lee. Cleo (Sharon Leal of Dreamgirls), a beautiful young woman who is tied to both men, accompanies them as a new lead singer. Can they pull off the all-important concert? What will the men have learned from each other? Ehh, watching Bernie & Sam do their thing is fun, at times. But the movie is as bland as they come.
The 60's/70's: A Soul trio comprised of Marcus Hooks (John Legend) & his 2 backups, Louis & Floyd (Sam Jackson, Bernie Mac) regularly occupied positions in the Top 40 charts. However, like most trios, the lead singer broke away to become a megastar. This left Louis & Floyd in the gutter. They tried to start their own group, but creative differences & horrible record sales ended the partnership.
Now, some 20 yrs. later, they find themselves with an out-of-left-field chance to once again stand in the all-important spotlight. Marcus has died & they've been asked to perform in a memorial concert at the historic Apollo Theater. The two guys set-off on a cross-country road trip, but there are burgeoning resentments btwn. them that come to the forefront when they add the beautiful Cleo to the group. As it turns out, she is the daughter of a woman once cherished by both Floyd AND Louis ... and may just be daughter of one of them. Melodrama ensues.
'Soul Men' has a lot of appeal. Firstly, both Mac & Jackson know how to hold a tune. I quite enjoyed their R&B crooning. Verbally, they are at their bold, brash, quick, mean-spirited, crude best. The best asset of the movie is their chemistry together. I believed them in these roles, and that goes a long way. The movie itself, however, is not that great. The material is nowhere as good as the 2 actors are; and they don't have much to work with. I found a lot of the penis/breasts/sex jokes to be over-the-top and/or misplaced within the context of the plot (it's really too profane to get a kick out of). Some plot points don't make sense. Some do, and you wish they didn't. Really, a hit-&-miss affair. See it to experience Bernie Mac in his final role. I wish this movie did him an honor, it nearly did him a disservice.
The 60's/70's: A Soul trio comprised of Marcus Hooks (John Legend) & his 2 backups, Louis & Floyd (Sam Jackson, Bernie Mac) regularly occupied positions in the Top 40 charts. However, like most trios, the lead singer broke away to become a megastar. This left Louis & Floyd in the gutter. They tried to start their own group, but creative differences & horrible record sales ended the partnership.
Now, some 20 yrs. later, they find themselves with an out-of-left-field chance to once again stand in the all-important spotlight. Marcus has died & they've been asked to perform in a memorial concert at the historic Apollo Theater. The two guys set-off on a cross-country road trip, but there are burgeoning resentments btwn. them that come to the forefront when they add the beautiful Cleo to the group. As it turns out, she is the daughter of a woman once cherished by both Floyd AND Louis ... and may just be daughter of one of them. Melodrama ensues.
'Soul Men' has a lot of appeal. Firstly, both Mac & Jackson know how to hold a tune. I quite enjoyed their R&B crooning. Verbally, they are at their bold, brash, quick, mean-spirited, crude best. The best asset of the movie is their chemistry together. I believed them in these roles, and that goes a long way. The movie itself, however, is not that great. The material is nowhere as good as the 2 actors are; and they don't have much to work with. I found a lot of the penis/breasts/sex jokes to be over-the-top and/or misplaced within the context of the plot (it's really too profane to get a kick out of). Some plot points don't make sense. Some do, and you wish they didn't. Really, a hit-&-miss affair. See it to experience Bernie Mac in his final role. I wish this movie did him an honor, it nearly did him a disservice.