Intolerably dreadful comedy about a spoiled Jewish socialite (Lisa Kudrow) who attempts to clean up the act of a notorious gangsta-rap artist (Damon Wayans) in order to appease a right-wing media watchdog bent on destroying her father, the man who owns the rapper's recording company. While director Richard Benjamin aspires to biting social satire about racial politics and First Amendment rights, the result is an unwatchable litany of lewd vulgarities and offensive caricatures strung together by a witless script, as morally objectionable as it is dull. Racial stereotyping, much crude and sexual humor, an implied sexual encounter and recurring rough and vulgar language, as well as an instance of profanity. O -- morally offensive. (R) 2003
Full Review
A spoiled Jewish socialite gets a crash course in race relations when she attempts to reform a notorious gangsta-rap artist in the intolerably dreadful comedy "Marci X" (Paramount).
While director Richard Benjamin aspires to biting social satire about racial politics and First Amendment rights, the result is an unwatchable litany of lewd vulgarities and offensive stereotypes strung together by a witless script, as morally objectionable as it is dull. Early on, the lisping Afroed rapper (played by Damon Wayans) explains how it's all about being "real" -- as in a real waste of your time and money.
Lisa Kudrow plays Marci Feld, whose big-shot, philanthropist father (Benjamin) is under siege by a conservative senator because he, unknowingly, has as one of his corporate holdings a record label which includes a controversial hip-hopster called Dr. S (Wayans). Dr. S's foul-mouthed repertoire includes incendiary titles like "Shoot Ya' Teacha" and "The Power Is in My Pants." When the elder Feld suffers a near-fatal heart attack, Marci takes it upon herself to clear her father's name by convincing Dr. S to clean up his act.
After several increasingly embarrassing clashes, Marci finds herself falling for Dr. S's ghetto charm; apparently, being referred to as a "ho" is quite the aphrodisiac. Rather than transforming the rapper into respectability, she joins him in the gutter, quickly jettisoning her bourgeois morality -- but keeping a firm hold on her Prada bag and Jimmy Choo shoes.
Along the way the film switches from a gefilte-fish-out-of-water comedy to a lame attack on traditional values, as Marci and Dr. S use blackmail to sabotage the media watchdog crusade of Senator Spinkle (Christine Baranski), the right-wing politico who has set her sights on the rapper. Wearing a permanent self-righteous sneer and dressed in a stodgy pillbox hat and white gloves, Spinkle is a walking conservative Christian cliche -- sexually repressed, hypocritical and willing to sacrifice her ideals in order to protect her political stock.
The film also takes some potshots at traditional teachings on sexual morality when a public service announcement featuring Dr. S and a fey N'Sync-like boy-band -- intended to promote sexual abstinence -- turns into a musical number promoting homosexuality.
Rather than offer any food for thought about current race relations, the film merely dredges up stale stereotypes -- proving equally offensive to both Jews and African-Americans -- in order to elicit some cheap laughs. Offensiveness is mistaken for insightful, silliness for satire and caricature for character as the same old racial chestnuts are regurgitated. Whites are uptight and blacks are pimp-clad Neanderthals; that is about as nuanced as this one gets. Regrettably, rather than closing the racial divide, such antediluvian stereotypes only serve to fan the flames of prejudicial perceptions, clearly showing just how far we still have to go.
At one point, during Spinkle's senate hearings, Dr. S defends his inflammatory lyrics by giving the committee a tutorial in doublespeak. He educates them about how words can be taken out of their cultural context, explaining that what is really meant by an offensive sexual reference in one of his rap songs is that he loves that person "with respect." Therefore, readers should understand that when this review states "this is possibly the worst film of the year," it should be interpreted as "this is possibly the worst film of the year." Forget about "da bomb"; this film simply is a bomb.
Due to racial stereotyping, much crude and sexual humor, an implied sexual encounter and recurring rough and vulgar language, as well as an instance of profanity, the USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is O -- morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.
Movies have been evaluated by the U.S. Conference of Catholic
Bishop's Office for Film and Broadcasting according to artistic
merit and moral suitability. The reviews include the USCCB rating,
the Motion Picture Association of America rating, and a brief
synopsis of the movie.
The classifications are as follows:
- A-I -- general patronage;
- A-II -- adults and adolescents;
- A-III -- adults;
- A-IV**
- L -- limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. L replaces the previous classification, A-IV.
- O -- morally offensive.
** Discontinued classification. All archived movies that were originally in the A-IV category are now classified as L.