Undercover Brother, the super-spy borne from an Internet cartoon, is a paradox, in a productive way. A funky brother in a decidedly unfunky time, he'd seem to be the perfect person to inject soul into a soulless age. But alas, "Undercover Brother", the movie borne from the Internet cartoon, is also a paradox, but in a more destructive way. It's also a very hypocritical film.

Right off the top, the film makes a point of denigrating the mistakes of recent black pop culture icons (Urkel, Rodman, etc.). I had high hopes for the inherent cleverness of its premise -- that said mistakes were perpetrated by a vast conspiracy to keep the funky black man down -- but the film goes on to reveal a host of characters that revel in those self same mistakes. Dave Chappelle's 'Conspiracy Brother' character, while providing most of the film's obvious laughs, is the kind of undignified manic clown that the film is railing against. Chi McBride's 'The Chief' is supposed to be a parody of a cliche (the gruff, always yelling, tough talking chief with a heart of gold), but it doesn't tear down the layers of this kind of character enough to make the point tangible and relevant.

The menace of 'The Man', a literal representation of that oft-mentioned vast conspiracy, while surely meant to be cartoonish should at least have been slightly real. We never see The Man's face, only a darkened silhouette. Fine. But his island fortress is more Dr. Evil than Dr. No (come to think of it, much of this movie feels like a pale "Austin Powers" knock-off). And his main henchman Mr. Feather, a role that could have been a golden opportunity to give a serious or burly actor a ridiculously comic part, is wasted by casting Chris Kattan. Kattan does little more than mug his way through the part (sadly, Kattan's isn't even the worst performance here; Denise Richards proves once again that even when she's playing the object of desire, she's useless). At several points he's supposed to show how Feather, an unabashed white supremacist, is a slave to the rhythm whenever a funky musical groove is played. Only Kattan can't find the beat with a flashlight and a metronome. And can you imagine the terror Undercover Brother must feel when confronted by his arch-nemesis, and said arch-nemesis is 5'5" and weighs 120 lbs soaking wet? That's right: there is none. I know, the incongruence of all this is supposed to be broad and jokey. But it sure isn't funny.

Many of the film's jokes can be seen coming a mile away. And when they can't, the filmmakers, who appear to have little respect for the intelligence of their audience, give a wink-wink visual explanation that wrings all semblance of humour from the proceedings. One such moment has The Chief lamenting that he's, "Too old for this s--t." In case you didn't get the obvious reference, he casts a knowing look on a picture of Danny Glover hanging on the wall behind him. Ugh! Mostly, the film can't decide if it's going to be an "Airplane"-style absurdist parody, or a "Saturday Night Live"-style slapstick romp. This lack of commitment dulls the comedy greatly.

Eddie Griffin, a comic-actor who can be supremely appealing when his grating charisma is toned down, isn't nearly as manic as he could have been. But he's also nowhere near as funny. Griffin, whose absurd improvisations nearly made "Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo" watchable, is kept on a leash so tight that he's in danger of asphyxiating. He tries his best to get mileage out of his enormous afro and retro clothing by flashing a big bright smile and busting a hip dance move every chance he gets, but he comes off more as a straight man than the riotous comic creation that this movie needs at its centre. Without it, the rest just falls flat.

Director Malcolm D. Lee gets in some retributive jabs on behalf of his brother Spike, and in the beginning it appears that he has created an interesting and energetic way of telling the story. But the film feels sloppily put together. Scenes end without rhyme or reason, and start up again without any sense of context. During the climactic battle, when two or three plotlines are happening at once, the audience becomes confused and lost in the action. Where Lee does shine is in his choice of music, assembling a super-funky soundtrack that cobbles together the greatest hits of The Commodores ('Brick House'), Wild Cherry ('Play That Funky Music'), James Brown ('Say It Loud (I'm Black And I'm Proud)') and, most pleasingly but somewhat out of place, Gil Scott-Heron ('The Revolution Will Not Be Televised'). Parliament's 'Give Up The Funk (Tear The Roof Off The Sucker)' scores Undercover Brother's intro with perfect panache. And the song used for the opening credits appears to be a well-conceived in-joke: 'Pick Up The Pieces' by the, ahem, Average White Band.

I have to give the film credit; it does have its moments. I caught myself laughing at a scene where Undercover Brother and two goons stop fighting, make themselves some snacks and sodas, and pull up a couple of chairs, when they realize that a cat fight has broken out between Denise Richards and Aunjanue Ellis' Sistah Girl. But the film is ultimately a failure because its premise, with so much potential for ripe parody and biting satire, is squandered at nearly every turn. "Undercover Brother" wants to uncover some relevant social issues with hip comedy. Instead, it covers them up with a wet blanket.

Recommended: No