Eddie Murphey
Interesting how they’ve incorporated so many of the staple elements of the ride. I’m not quite sure if I should praise Disney for ingenious backwards marketing or if I should feel disgusted because they really should have no part in a feature film.
Regardless, it looks like Eddie is up to his childish tricks again. sigh
I saw the preview for this before PotC obviously.
It didn’t look as promising as Pirates. But Pirates has no business being as good as it is.
I think Mansion will be the rule to Pirates’ exception. It will suck ass.
Is Eddie Murphy going to go down as one of the most puzzling and tragic figures in entertainment history?
The person who can figure this guy out deserves a Nobel prize.
Most comedians start doing kids movies or at least tame movies when they get older. They lose touch with the people they were funny too and decide instead to make movies for their kids and kids all over.
It’s not such a bad thing to make a child happy.
I thought his voice work as Donkey in SHREK was pretty solid, but then that called for over-the-top.
I predict that the year 2019’s answer to Quentin Tarantino, PT Anderson, or Wes Anderson will resurrect Murphy’s career in a fairly serious role, a la Travolta, Reynolds, and Bill Murray.
What’s puzzling and/or tragic about it?
This looked terrible…
“No! Not the chair! Don’t raise the chair!”
I’m not sure if this is going to be a hilarious reinvention or a cheap, degrading “add darkies to a genre, they talk funny” flick.
Puzzling = A great comedian is now making kiddie flicks that aren’t very funny to either kids or adults. ???
Tragic = A great comedian is now making kiddie flicks that aren’t very funny to either kids or adults when ostensibly he could be striving to be really funny again.
I mean, if you’re going to go downhill like that its better to avoid staining the memory of your glory days and just kill yourself.
48 Hrs., Beverly Hills Cop, Raw, Trading Places, Coming to America.
The Adventures of Pluto Nash (not even a kiddie flick and it sucked), I Spy (not even a kiddle flick and it sucked), Daddy Day Care, Dr. Doolittle (1 and 2).
Why not reinvent yourself ala Robin Williams or delve into the extremes ala Richard Pryor? Do sometimes BESIDES taking the safe, cash in route and destroying your reputation in the process.
Eddie Murphy needs a new advisor and a new agent.
And jesus… someone to read over the script before he accepts the job.
Yeah, watching the previews I was uncomfortably reminded of the black servant or valet that always showed up whenever the Three Stooges got stuck in a haunted house. From the previews, it appears as if that’s where Murphy did his research for the character.
You’re saying Disney specifically wrote and looked for a black person for this role?
Look forward to Ghost Master 2 mystically disappearing and then the announcement of Haunted Mansion being in development.
Says you. The DOCTOR DOLITTLE and NUTTY PROFESSOR movies and even DADDY DAY CARE were all huge hits at the box office and enjoyed by kids and adults alike. Not my cup of tea, sure, and obviously not yours either, but your contention that these movies are not funny certainly seems to fly in the face of popular opinion. Sure, he’s made a couple of bombs, but which A-list Hollywood star hasn’t?
As to your assertion that he could be striving to be “really funny” again - again, says you. Maybe that’s just not what he wants to do. He’s older now and has kids of his own - maybe he’s more interested in making these kinds of movies. In terms of box-office, recognition and popularity, he’s bigger now than he ever was, and certainly a big enough star that he could decide to do something “raw” again if he wanted to - maybe he will. In the meantime, he’s not being railroaded into this kind of material. I don’t see what’s puzzling or tragic about any of this.
You’re saying Disney specifically wrote and looked for a black person for this role?[/quote]
Well, that’s the angle, isn’t it? It’s a haunted house movie…except with a middle class black family!
No, the angle I see is a haunted house movie (with a middle class family) that’s based on a theme park ride. They wrote the script then hired Murphy (10 years ago it would have definitely been Robin Williams) and then it became a middle class black family (because, as you noticed, Eddie Murphy is black).
Are you sure you’re not looking too hard here Jason? This is reminding me of your “the orcs of LOTR are black people because they move like black people” thread.
Says you. The DOCTOR DOLITTLE and NUTTY PROFESSOR movies and even DADDY DAY CARE were all huge hits at the box office and enjoyed by kids and adults alike. Not my cup of tea, sure, and obviously not yours either, but your contention that these movies are not funny certainly seems to fly in the face of popular opinion. Sure, he’s made a couple of bombs, but which A-list Hollywood star hasn’t?[/quote]
You have GOT to be kidding me…
Daddy Day Care didn’t even crack $100 Million. I don’t have the numbers for the other movies although The Nutty Professor was pretty good.
I went to Rotten Tomatoes to see if I’m just crazy…
The last four Tomatoes he has been in are Shrek, Bowfinger, Mulan, and The Nutty Professor. Of those, two don’t even have him on-screen. One (Bowfinger) is a twist on classic Murphy and one owes itself as much to makeup and costumes as anything else. This is what the guy has done in the last 16 years.
The first 5 years, on the other hand, also featured four Tomatoes, 48 Hrs., Trading Places, Beverly Hills Cop, and Raw (I thought Coming to America deserved a Tomato for sure).
Now, lets take a look at his weak stuff from the first 5 years…
The Golden Child - Murphy was way out of his acting element here. No problem… just a failed experiment.
Best Defense - A very bad idea. Somehow got by the “if it sounds stupid on paper it probably will be stupid on screen” censors.
That’s it. Best Defense wasn’t rated by RT although it clearly would get a Splat if it was. So 4 goods and 2 bads.
Besides the 4 Tomatoes already mentioned, the last 16 years give us…
Daddy Day Care
Showtime
The Adventures of Pluto Nash
I Spy
Dr. Doolittle 1 and 2
Nutty Professor 2
Life
Holy Man
Metro
Vampire in Brooklyn
Beverly Hills Cop 2 and 3
Boomerang
The Distinguished Gentleman
Another 48 Hrs.
Harlem Nights
So that’s 4 mostly Murphy-lite Tomatoes and 17 Splats. And some of those movies aren’t just bad, they are sort of legendarily bad like Vampire in Brooklyn and Nash. I hadn’t even heard of Showtime… which tells you just how his career is going. In his early days if Murphy scratched his ass you’d hear about it. He’s falling off the radar.
Nowadays people watch Murphy not in order to see him be funny but to ask “Will he rediscover how to be funny?”… its like the playing out of a Greek Tragedy… Daddy Day Care is more of a laughing at than a laughing with.
Besides that, the reason people watch him is that he still resembles the 1982-1987 Eddie Murphy. I mean… he LOOKS like him… that has to count for something, right?
But back to the original point, of Murphy selling out…
Even movies like The Golden Child and Best Defense had some interesting things going on… they had hope even if they ultimately failed.
Some of his recent ventures are the result of a man who thinks all he has to do to make a film good is be in it. Holy Man is a classic example… the script is garbage. Why would you be in a movie where the script is garbage? Either you trust your agent who fucks you over, or its for money.
But worse is that he is now actively trying to construct a kiddie persona for himself.
Well, I guess it makes sense for him to focus on the people who don’t remember him from 1982-1987…
Metro was pretty good.
BK, did you see Daddy Day Care, Dr Doolittle or Dr Doolittle 2?
[quote=“Bub_Andrew”]
No, the angle I see is a haunted house movie (with a middle class family) that’s based on a theme park ride. They wrote the script then hired Murphy (10 years ago it would have definitely been Robin Williams) and then it became a middle class black family (because, as you noticed, Eddie Murphy is black).
Are you sure you’re not looking too hard here Jason? This is reminding me of your “the orcs of LOTR are black people because they move like black people” thread.[/quote]
I guess we’ll she based on how much shuckin’ and jivin’ there is.
So, let’s see here, you’re going to call the casting racist until you’re proven wrong? Just because they cast a black guy? By this logic we’d better stop casting black people in parts because of what film-makers might do… right? You’re expecting Murphy to bug his eyes out and yell “Lawdy! Feets don’t fail me now!”
Are you Jessie Jackson all of a sudden? Jason, you’re a white presumably upper-middle class 25 year old. Where’s this righteous paranoia coming from exactly?
Oh and “she”? Are you saying it’s sexist now too? 