It really should have been made solely as a drama instead of incorporating comedic elements, as the comedic elements force you to suspend your disbelief of the drama itself. This is especially true when it comes to the music montages... they should not have any comedy incorporated as the film then looks like a parody of itself, which causes you to anticipate a punchline during the intensely dramatic parts, such as when the racist cops pull over the group in the South, when the guy is being held over the balcony like Vanilla Ice, when the guy gets run over by a dump truck, and when the guy becomes addicted to crack... he's not Chris Rock on In Living Color, he's a representation of real-life Motown singers that fell apart and lost it all. Even the first opening scene where the guy has to escape a card game... the film cuts back and forth from the comedy of the first performance and the drama of the escape. Its too emotionally jarring with the true socio-emotional issues of the characters being parodied (I guess this is what happens when a Wayans brother helps write your movie!).
This movie is a great movie with great actors, especially Michael Wright (Eddie), who is an amazing under-rated actor who gives it his all in this film. But I don't think Robert Townsend should have acted in this movie, as he is not the best actor for drama. He always has a smirk on his face and looks like he is about to bust out laughing, which is overly evident during the music montages... which are actually some of the worst parts of the movie.
I think the worst aspect of the movie altogether is the voice-overs during the music montages. As if a band member would be able to talk on stage to his band-mates in a low volume voice, and have the band-mates hear them without their voice picking up on the microphone for the audience to hear... its just not believable in any way possible. Not to mention, Townsend's character directs his band-mates to sing and dance in real-time on the stage, having to make changes on a dime... that is absolutely unbelievable. It would not be possible, and that type of thing parodies the entire concept of live music altogether. "Okay, you sing in a low voice... NOW! Okay, now you and the other guy do backup vocals in harmonic thirds... NOW! Okay, now spin around and do a three foot shuffle with a slide into the chorus... NOW!" Absolutely ridiculous. It makes the Motown performances look like an episode of Who's Line Is It Anyway with Drew Carey... cmon!
If you can suspend your disbelief to the infinite degree during those performances, ignore the comedic aspect, and allow yourself to become emotionally vested in the drama of the film, then you will enjoy the movie for what it is meant to be worth. If this movie had been released on Lifetime or BET, instead of releasing in theaters, I think it would have received better critic response. Especially if it was filmed in 2020, as critics wouldn't have responded to the commentary on racism with such a negative view. In 1991 it was considered to be shoehorned into the movie, but in 2020 every movie is a shoehorned commentary on racism.
This movie is a great movie with great actors, especially Michael Wright (Eddie), who is an amazing under-rated actor who gives it his all in this film. But I don't think Robert Townsend should have acted in this movie, as he is not the best actor for drama. He always has a smirk on his face and looks like he is about to bust out laughing, which is overly evident during the music montages... which are actually some of the worst parts of the movie.
I think the worst aspect of the movie altogether is the voice-overs during the music montages. As if a band member would be able to talk on stage to his band-mates in a low volume voice, and have the band-mates hear them without their voice picking up on the microphone for the audience to hear... its just not believable in any way possible. Not to mention, Townsend's character directs his band-mates to sing and dance in real-time on the stage, having to make changes on a dime... that is absolutely unbelievable. It would not be possible, and that type of thing parodies the entire concept of live music altogether. "Okay, you sing in a low voice... NOW! Okay, now you and the other guy do backup vocals in harmonic thirds... NOW! Okay, now spin around and do a three foot shuffle with a slide into the chorus... NOW!" Absolutely ridiculous. It makes the Motown performances look like an episode of Who's Line Is It Anyway with Drew Carey... cmon!
If you can suspend your disbelief to the infinite degree during those performances, ignore the comedic aspect, and allow yourself to become emotionally vested in the drama of the film, then you will enjoy the movie for what it is meant to be worth. If this movie had been released on Lifetime or BET, instead of releasing in theaters, I think it would have received better critic response. Especially if it was filmed in 2020, as critics wouldn't have responded to the commentary on racism with such a negative view. In 1991 it was considered to be shoehorned into the movie, but in 2020 every movie is a shoehorned commentary on racism.