I sincerely respect the time and effort that goes into screenwriting and movie making. And I appreciated the message behind Dolemite is My Name, follow your dreams, take a chance. And so I feel jaded saying that similar to Pain & Glory, I was non-plussed by Dolemite is My Name. Again, I appreciated the story, but just wasn’t moved or inspired.
Here’s why: The Disaster Artist to me was a fantastic movie. The cameos and writing were comedic, yet there were also touching moments. With Dolemite, it was all too breezy, I never felt the angst in Eddie’s character to make me want to root for him. And I love Eddie Murphy, I love his stand up, all of his SNL characters and his other movie performances.
I also fully realize the writing team of Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski have a large body of work, specializing in biopics “The People Vs. Larry Flynt”, “Ed Wood” and “Big Eyes” to name a few. Yet Dolemite, like “Big Eyes” is simply likeable because the emotions involved are stifled.
Back to my sunny optimistic “What’s good?” self…the best acting in the film is actually done by Wesley Snipes, who plays the diva movie star Eddie cons into being in his movie. I also enjoyed the cameos: Snoop Dog and Chris Rock. Da’Vine Joy Randolph was gorgeous as the female lead and Tituss Burgess was also totally believable.
Back to my dark side: Craig Robinson stuck out like a sore thumb as did Keegan-Michael Key. They are just simply transparent, much like the wigs used in the film, just very artificial.
I’ll stick the landing, to use a gymnastic term, and end on a positive note. The costuming was out of this world, from the flashy suits Eddie wore, to the beatific outfits Da’Vine donned. And that’s about the only category I’d vouch for an award nomination.
Sure, Dolemite is My Name is entertaining, but when people start to go ga-ga over a film that doesn’t move me emotionally, I just have to speak out.
