Review: Soul Men

Soul Men

OPENING: 11/07/2008

STUDIO: Dimension Films

TRAILER: Trailer

ACCOMPLICES: Official Site

The Charge
Out of sync. Never out of style.

Opening Statement
Many critics are being exceptionally kind to Soul Men. This has a lot to do with the passing of Bernie Mac and Isaac Hayes, both of whom star in the film. I think this increased amount of critical forgiveness is entirely appropriate, because audience members will be doing precisely the same thing. The movie is flawed, uneven, rather messy at times… but none of that really matters in the end. When the film concludes, the viewer is left with a single thought that will linger on: “I’m glad I got to see Bernie and Isaac one last time.”


Facts of the Case
Mac plays Floyd, who was once a member of a popular musical trio. The lead singer of the group was Marcus (John Legend), and the third member was a bass player named Louis (Samuel L. Jackson). After a brief run of success as a group, Marcus left to start a very rewarding solo career. Floyd and Louis briefly attempted to keep things going on their own, but personal differences soon bitterly split them apart. Now everyone is off in their own little world. Marcus is riding high, Floyd is running a car dealership, and Louis is living in poverty. Suddenly, without warning, Marcus passes away.

This news inspires a music label to try and create a reunion between Floyd and Louis. They want the duo to get together one last time to perform at a musical celebration of Marcus, but that’s going to be a little tricky. Floyd hesitantly agrees, but Louis will have none of it. He’s done with that life, and never wants to return under any circumstances. That’s until he is informed that there is a $40,000 payment for performing. Louis begrudgingly changes his tune, and the pair hits the road to head to a concert in Memphis. Along the way, there will be brief stops for warm-up musical performances, personal drama, comic interludes, and a wide variety of the usual shenanigans.

The Evidence
Soul Men was directed by Malcolm Lee, who continually shows promise but never quite lives up to it. Consider a release from earlier this year, the Martin Lawrence vehicle Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins. The film had likable characters, a strong premise, genuine heart, and some good acting, but Lee ultimately buried all of this under a pile of unnecessary slapstick. To some degree, the same thing happens in Soul Men, but the results are not as devastating. The characters are given a little bit more time to breathe, and our built-in goodwill towards Mac and Hayes handles the rest.

That being said, this is not a movie without genuine merit. Mac and Jackson are fine actors, and both are in pretty sharp form. Mac had been demonstrating increasing levels of skill in recent years, and I suspected he would soon be given The Role that would define his career and elevate him to the next level. Soul Men does not give him The Role, but considering his untimely death, I’m grateful for what it did give him: a chance to play himself. Mac and Jackson are two actors who are immensely appealing when they are simply doing “their thing,” and both do that thing they do here. Mac is warm, funny, and a little bit sensitive, while Jackson blends that Zen-like cool with a boiling fury, all wrapped up in a memorable series of grins and scowls. These are guys we love hanging out with, and the movie knows it.

Along the way, we’re given some pretty enjoyable music, comedy that is smile-inducing more often than not, and a few gentle dramatic moments that are kind of touching. It’s a nice movie, even if it’s unnecessarily crass at times. These days, we’re seeing a lot of hard R comedies hiding a soft core under a barrage of foul language. In many cases, that works out nicely, but I wonder if Soul Men might have been a bit better if it had simply given us the soft core without the hardened outer layer. There I go pointing out problems again, which I intended not to do much of when I began this review.

Closing Statement
Soul Men will entertain you, and you will get a chance to see Bernie Mac up on the big screen one last time. Sometimes a film that was never intended to be much just happens to arrive at precisely the right moment. Soul Men is one of those films. If you see it, see it now. It will never be better than it is today.

The Verdict
8/10

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