The Nutty Professor
The Nutty Professor (Universal Pictures)
Director: Tom Shadyac
Producers: Brian Grazer, Russell Simmons
Executive Producers: Jerry Lewis, Karen Kehela, Mark Lipsky
Screenwriters: David Sheffield, Barry W. Blaustein, Tom Shadyac, Steve
Oedekerk based on the motion picture written by Jerry Lewis, Bill
Richmond
Cast: Eddie Murphy, Eddie Murphy, etc. plus Jada Pinkett, James
Coburn, Larry Miller, Dave Chappelle
Quick Review: Give Eddie Murphy credit: He started as
an impressionist, and he can melt into a variety of characters with
seeming ease. He showed off that ability in COMING TO AMERICA, but the
state of special effects art has advanced a lot since then. He's
absolutely invisible -- to me, at least -- in several of the seven
characters he plays, especially the shy and corpulent Prof. Sherman
Klump. If the script were up to the impersonations and digital
effects, this would be one of the must-see movies of the summer. Alas,
it wanders. The climactic scene is rich in visuals and poor in
verbiage.
It's still worth seeing, but you will wish that the sum of it all was
as valuable as the fascinating parts.
Rating (on a four-star scale):
Eddie Murphy interview.
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