Video/DVD Review: The Man
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What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that the movie features crude humor and
ridiculous violence, involving vehicle crashes and physical
abuses (trash can lids and phone books slammed into heads, and
various other brutalities staged as comedy). The film premises
much of its humor on the imbalance between the timid Midwestern
salesman and the tough Detroit cop, including repeated
discussions of who is whose "bitch" (a term also heard in a
hip-hop song on the soundtrack), and other definitions of
masculine prowess. The villains -- including an arrogant, young
British boss -- are excessively violent as well, shooting a
noncompliant client on the toilet. One black character
threatens to beat another "like a runaway slave." The film
includes brief gross images of bad teeth (during a presentation
at a dental appliance convention), dead bodies, bad language
(especially combinations of "ass," "shit," and the f-word), and
fart/flatulence jokes. Characters smoke and drink, sell drugs.
Families can talk about the film's use of rude jokes to get to
a seemingly "family-friendly" point. Andy convinces Vann that
he needs to pay attention to his young daughter (now living
with her mother and stepfather). How does the movie maneuver
between cop-buddy themes and PG-13 comedy themes? How do Andy's
morality and idealism affect Vann's amorality and cynicism? How
does the movie compare criminals and cops, so both look
aggressive, self-absorbed, and small-minded?
Dental appliances salesman Andy Fiddler (Eugene Levy) comes to Detroit from Wisconsin for a convention. ATF Agent Derrick Vann (Samuel L. Jackson), whose partner was just killed, is working on a case involving gunrunners, headed by Joey Trent (Luke Goss). When Vann arranges an undercover buy, Fiddler is mistaken for the buyer, and Vann then needs his help on the case.
The time limit on the interracial buddy-cop formula has surely expired. And yet, THE MAN rehashes all the old jokes and inanities, bringing precious little that's entertaining or new.
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