“Guess Who” is just like most meet-the-girlfriend’s-parents movies,
complete with the stereotypical understanding mother and the
always-right, obsessed, over-protective father. The only difference
“Guess Who” can boast is the introduction of an interracial couple into
the story line, which lends an almost-original twist to the movie.
Ashton Kutcher plays Simon Green, the white boyfriend Theresa Jones
(Zoe Saldana) brings home to meet her parents. Theresa and her family
are black, and her father is more than surprised by her new beau of
another race.
But even before he meets Simon, crazy father Percy Jones (Bernie
Mac) has Simon checked out, complete with a credit check. Whereas most
fathers would just subject the new guy to a grueling interrogation at a
family meal, Percy’s interest in his daughter’s love life leans toward
obsession – so much so that he sleeps in the same bed with Simon to
make sure everyone stays in their own bedroom at night.
His character is reminiscent of Jack (Robert DeNiro), the outrageous
dad from “Meet the Parents,” except Percy isn’t ex-CIA. And just like
when you watched “Meet the Parents,” you want to yell at dad Percy,
“Stop already!” His antics are too ridiculous to watch comfortably.
Ultimately, Percy doesn’t care that his daughter’s new boyfriend is
white; he just thinks that no man is good enough for Theresa.
Despite the absurdity of much of the plot, Kutcher and Saldana are
cuter-than-cute as the secretly engaged couple. They have a natural
chemistry which makes you wish the movie was more about them and less
about dad’s weirdness. And Kutcher is good at comedy – most of the
laughs you get are from his slapstick antics.
Saldana herself is a fine actress who outshines a lot of the cast.
Judith Scott plays Marilyn Jones, the sane mother of Theresa who
consistently has to remind Percy to stay out of his daughter’s business
(to no avail).
Mac has made a career out of being funny; it’s just too bad that this movie doesn’t use his skills in a better way.
Rated PG-13 for some sex-related humor, “Guess Who” runs an hour and
44 minutes. Special DVD features include a gag reel (which is always
fun), a making-of documentary, optional commentary and some other movie
trailers.
“Guess Who” isn’t reported to be an update of 1967’s “Guess Who’s
Coming to Dinner,” and other than a small plot similarity, the two
movies don’t have much in common. “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner” has
become a classic, and “Guess Who,” well, is a comedy that had a lot of
potential to be good, but in the end, only produces a few laughs.
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