I've always found Steve Martin to be very funny, so when I saw the advertisements for Bringing Down the House, his presence was enough to get me interested in what looked to be a fairly low-brow comedy. It didn't hurt, either, that Queen Latifah was his co-star; she brings a boisterous vitality to all of her roles, and she and Martin looked like a winning, if rather odd, combination. Throw uber-square Eugene Levy into the mix, and that's quite a winning cast. And so my brother and I went to see it when it hit the dollar theater here in Erie. I found it amusing enough but wasn't sufficiently inspired to write a review, and I sort of forgot about the movie until my recent obsession with Michael Rosenbaum uncovered the fact that he too appeared in this film. Suddenly I was all jazzed to watch it again, and I got my chance when I caught it on television. My, my, Michael, aren't you delectable? And it isn't just the lack of hair...

Ahem. I can gush over Michael later. Now, to business. The film focuses on Peter Sanderson (Martin), a workaholic lawyer who never has time for his kids (Kimberly Brown and Angus Jones) and whose wife Kate (Jean Smart) has divorced him because of the fact that his job always comes first. As the film opens, Peter is getting ready for a blind date with a woman with whom he has corresponded online. He's in for the surprise of his life when he discovers that Charlene (Latifah) is not the petite blond professional he had anticipated. No, this is a brassy, sassy black woman with an ulterior motive. She was framed for a heinous crime, and she wants Peter to clear her name. In the meantime, she takes up residence in his house, warming to his kids and finding herself on the receiving end of the passionate affections of Peter's colleague Howie (Levy).

While Charlene ceases to be a romantic interest for Peter as soon as he realizes he's been had, he does have a romantic side-plot involving re-igniting the love he and his ex-wife shared, and Charlene has a few ideas as to how they can patch things up. But foremost in Peter's mind is landing a dream client, the fabulously wealthy Mrs. Arness (Joan Plowright). Not only must he compete for her with Todd (Rosenbaum), a flashy young lawyer in his office who's as irritating as he is gorgeous, but he has to conceal the strange goings-on in his household in order to win the trust of the stodgy old woman. His bigoted neighbor, Mrs. Kline (Betty White), makes matters even more complicated for him, as does Kate's obnoxious friend Ashley (Missi Pyle).

Martin, Latifah and Levy work wonderfully well together in the film. It's a strange threesome, but their combined charisma and comedic gifts make enjoyable a movie whose script leaves a bit to be desired. Of the rest of the cast, Plowright and White stand out in their hard-headed elderly roles, and while Rosenbaum's suave appearance is brief, it's fun to see him with hair, and playing such a non-threatening nemesis. I found Brown and Pyle annoying, even when they weren't meant to be, and Smart and Jones aren't very memorable. But on the whole, the acting in the film was pretty solid.

The movie is funny, no doubt. Unfortunately, it relies on all sorts of racial stereotypes in order to get a laugh or two, and this often degenerates into something more uncomfortable than humorous, especially when White or Plowright are on screen. I'm glad the movie was only rated PG-13 because I do think the movie restrained itself at times, and with an R rating all of its worst attributes would have been amplified. It's sort of a schizophrenic movie, because it seems to want to undermine the very stereotypes it exploits. There's a decent message in there about cross-cultural appreciation if you can see past the inappropriate jokes. If you like any of the leads, you should give it a shot, as all three are terrific. Just be warned...

Recommended:
Yes