Dolemite Is My Name

Rating: R
Runtime: 1 hour, 57 minutes
Director: Craig Brewer

Quick Impressions:
Three films that I’m dying to see all open here next week (Parasite, Jojo Rabbit, and The Lighthouse). But that’s next week.

This week, the choice seemed to be the second Zombieland (when we still haven’t seen the first one) or Maleficent: Mistress of Evil. Sleeping Beauty is my favorite Disney movie. I love Michelle Pfeiffer, really like Elle Fanning, admire the talent of Angelina Jolie, and still had absolutely no desire to see that film. I tried so hard to want to see it. For the past week, I’ve been trying to talk myself into it, but why should I pay to see a movie I expect to be bad? I honestly began to feel sick to my stomach, ultimately wishing I could stay home and watch more Scooby Doo cartoons with the kids instead. (Briefly, I considered pushing Mistress of Evil to the weekend as a decent family outing, but even the kids don’t want to see it! I’m sure Angelina Jolie looks fantastic in those costumes, but I’ll wait till it comes to Disney +.)

That’s how we ended up at the one theater in town playing Dolemite Is My Name, the biopic (and Eddie Murphy showcase) of Blaxploitation star and godfather of rap Rudy Ray Moore. I know absolutely nothing about Blaxploitation movies (except that they exist), but here’s what I do know. I will never willingly pay to spend the evening watching a bad movie if there is a good movie available. I’ve been hearing whispers that Dolemite is heart-warming and hilarious (true) and Murphy is Oscar-worthy (also true). Plus I really loved Hustle & Flow (also directed by Craig Brewer). So we drove across town to see Dolemite even though we’re Netflix subscribers, and the movie will be available to stream next week.

Maybe that sounds crazy, but it is honestly extremely hard to sneak in movies that are not child-friendly at home. We already have a list of like twenty movies we plan to watch with our daughter and older son (when his schedule permits) and yet all we ever seem to watch lately is Scooby Doo. (I’m not complaining. Scooby Doo is awesome. But it’s easier to watch R-rated films in the theater.)

The Good:
Eddie Murphy does deserve at least an Oscar nomination for his work here, but I’m incredibly skeptical that the Academy will ever honor him with a win. He has not been shy about criticizing the Academy, and they snubbed him pretty blatantly back in 2007, and he responded pretty badly, and then when he was supposed to host the Oscars, he ended up bowing out when Brett Ratner stepped down. I’m definitely no Hollywood insider, so I could be reading this wrong, but if Eddie Murphy actually wins an Oscar, I will be extremely surprised.

He deserves one for his work here, though (not to say that other performances this year are not also deserving).

This broadly true story about entertainer Rudy Ray Moore’s determined climb to fame is compelling stuff, both fun and interesting to watch, but Murphy’s nuanced lead performance is what makes the film really special.

As I watched, I kept thinking to myself, “I know this guy can make it. He has such a spark, this ineffable star quality.” Then I realized, “Of course he does! He’s Eddie Murphy!” It’s to Murphy’s credit that I kept forgetting that. Well, “forgetting” is the wrong word. But I kept getting lost in the character, focusing on Rudy Ray Moore and his struggles and triumphs.

Now, as you would expect, Murphy pulls off the moments of comedy extremely well (arguably better than Moore himself when it comes to appealing to the broadest audience possible. Before the film, the theater showed numerous clips of the real Rudy Ray Moore, and while he’s charming and reasonably funny, he’s no Eddie Murphy. But I do think that after watching Murphy perform the role, I appreciated Moore’s humor more when I saw him performing in some of those same clips in the film’s end credits. I think Murphy’s performance made Moore’s humor more accessible to me. I’m hardly the original target audience for those bits, but I feel like I get it after watching the film.)

That Eddie Murphy is funny is not news. What makes the film something special is the way Murphy reveals Moore’s interior world to us, almost entirely non-verbally. The antics of Dolemite on stage are great, but Murphy shows us the real Rudy Ray Moore, the human being. And he often does this without having to say a word. This telegraphing of the man’s pain, passion, motivations, frailties, strengths seems so natural. It looks effortless. Here the often exuberant Murphy is the opposite of over-the-top. He reveals the heart of this character to us with such subtlety. We understand who this man is so quickly and so thoroughly that it’s impossible not to sympathize with him. Thanks to Murphy, we’re rooting for Moore (practically as hopeful for his success as he is) before he even comes up with the idea of appearing as Dolemite. We watch the story unfolding and connect to the character, understand his motivations, feel his frustrations. The comedy in the film is big and loud and over-the-top, but the emotional core of the story is conveyed to us with such quiet realism. It looks effortlessly authentic. We don’t even spend much time thinking about the quality of Murphy’s performance. We’re just moved by it. At least, that was my experience.

It also helps that the world around Murphy feels so real and immersive. Four years before I was born, Dolemite was a real movie that made huge impression on a lot of people. And yet I’ve never even been aware of it until now. This keeps happening to me. I see a movie or read a book and suddenly get just a tiny taste of this entirely new, rich vibrant world I never knew anything about before. Just the other day, I realized, “I’m already forty. I’m never going to finish learning about everything even in just this world. There are so many vast microcosms of existence. I’m never going to have time for even a quick look at everything.” That’s a wearying thought, but I still intend to cram in as much as I can, whether that impulse is justified by some logical end or not.

But this peek into the world of niche stand-up and 1975 Blaxploitation flicks is so intriguing. It feels real. The costumes are fantastic, and the music is good, too. I can’t imagine how much work must go into so meticulously recreating an earlier era. (The characters, too, are, in a sense, recreating an earlier era by reimagining it. I love the idea that the historic theater lives again by borrowing some electricity, some power from the neighborhood.)

I’m also now incredibly intrigued by the character of Dolemite. The film’s promotional material left me with the impression that Moore created the character, but the movie itself reveals that Dolemite is an existing stock character of urban myth or something, someone who goes along with “the signifying monkey.” The English major in me is genuinely curious about this. I first learned about signifying as a trope when I taught rhetoric as a grad student. The rooms of people laughing hysterically at Moore’s routines obviously were already familiar with Dolemite and knew what to expect from him. I am not. But I am now intrigued.

The humor in this movie gets gradually funnier and funnier. The longer you watch, the more you feel the impact of the jokes. Some scenes are an absolute scream, and not just the performances of Dolemite, either.

Moore’s interactions with his aunt (Luenell) nearly killed me. The actors have fantastic chemistry and the writing itself is so sharp and clever. Luenell and Murphy make wonderful scene partners, but the entire supporting cast is excellent. This movie is teeming with not only engaging supporting performances (by some big names), but also well drawn, genuinely compelling supporting characters.

The other actor who might have a shot at an Oscar nomination is Wesley Snipes playing D’Urville Martin the film-within-a-film’s extremely eccentric and somewhat unwilling director who apparently also appeared in Rosemary’s Baby as the elevator operator. (I am now thinking I’ll have to rewatch Rosemary’s Baby to look for him.) Snipes plays someone whose real life appears to be a performance, so this is an extremely different type of performance from Murphy’s. Where Murphy is effectively subtle, Snipes is delightfully over-the-top. He’s really good, though. His energy here reminds me of his wacky work as the crazy villain in Demolition Man. (I really love him in that movie.) Afterwards, my husband remarked, “I’ve never seen Wesley Snipes in a role in this type of film. Usually he just does action movies.” I said, “He was in To Wong Foo,” and my husband said, “I’ve never seen To Wong Foo.” I don’t know why that surprised me. That’s hardly like saying, “I’ve never seen Star Wars.” I guess the point is, Wesley Snipes is a good actor, and his performance here is pretty showy and fun to watch. Best Supporting Actor already feels pretty crowded, but I could see Snipes sneaking in there.

Tituss Burgess, Craig Robinson, and Mike Epps are also good in key supporting roles. And look for big names and famous faces in small parts (like Snoop Dogg, Chris Rock). I especially liked Keegan-Michael Key as Jerry Jones, the playwright conscripted to help Moore pen the screenplay. (He has one line that made me laugh out loud. It’s his delivery more than anything.) I was also pleased to see Kodi Smit-McPhee (whom I think of as the voice of ParaNorman.)

I was unfamiliar with Da’Vine Joy Randolph who plays Dolemite’s protege Lady Reed, but apparently she is a Broadway star. That is really not surprising. She has fantastic charisma and presence. I absolutely loved her as Lady Reed. One thing I love about the character is that she keeps saying she knows she’s not beautiful, and I’m thinking, “Um, yes you are.” She exudes this amazing energy. She looks absolutely gorgeous every second that she’s onscreen, even before her glamorous transformation. She’s the perfect leading lady for Dolemite, and her relationship with Moore is so satisfying. It isn’t romantic, but they make such perfect partners. (I say it isn’t romantic meaning that they’re not a couple, but there is a kind of romance in it, a mutual love of performance and dreaming big.) (I also really like her gold lipstick in the final scenes.) (I’d be fine with her getting an Oscar nomination, too, but realistically, probably no one in this movie will actually get nominated. I don’t know. We’ll see.)

Best Scene:

I personally absolutely love the private brainstorming session when Moore enthusiastically describes to Keegan-Michael Key’s Jerry Jones all his ideas for the movie. I laughed so hard at one of Moore’s suggestions (that is ultimately scrapped). But what’s brilliant about this scene is that not only is Murphy hilarious, but he shows us Moore wanting to connect with his audience. And then Key’s character listens to Moore’s actual experiences and sees value in them that Moore himself has not really considered. He does have a story to tell, and the audience will definitely get it. (And why shouldn’t they also enjoy it?)

Best Scene Visually:

I love the photoshoot for Dolemite’s album cover, and also the brilliant idea to allay his nerves during the sex scene in the movie, but for me the most powerful visual comes at the very end of the movie, when Moore sees his dreams realized (in a sense).

In the beginning of the film, he so longs for connection, for somebody to see what he sees, to understand him, to get it. In the end, he finds that connection (tangibly), and he recognizes it and celebrates it. What could be better?

Best Action Sequence:

It’s a toss-up what’s better, the recreation of that amazing car chase, or the frantic rush to finish the film with one last big, unbelievable burst of action.

Most Oscar Worthy Moment, Eddie Murphy:

My husband noted an early scene when Moore’s friends laugh at him in a diner, and he walks out in frustration into the night. He makes a point. Murphy gives us such a sense of the character in this moment, and there’s no profanity, so it could be used as a clip on an awards show.

Most Oscar Worthy Moment, Wesley Snipes:

D’Urville Martin is such a character. The brilliance of Snipes’s performance lies not in one single moment, but in the fact that he sustains this outrageous character for so long and finds such variety in the performance of it. The scene where Moore and his friends first meet him is completely enchanting.

The Negatives:

Very soon you’ll be able to watch this movie at home on Netflix. But don’t think you’ll be able to throw it on in the living room while your kids are playing in the corner and your parents and grandparents are sitting expectantly on the sofa waiting for entertainment. Dolemite’s humor involves an element of crudity, lewdness, profanity, and boundary pushing that will make some people uncomfortable.

This film is well acted, atmospheric, heart-warming, hilarious, and extremely thought-provoking in a number of ways, but people who are automatically turned off by crudity will be affronted. This is not something you can watch with your children or your easily offended parents. It won’t help to say, “Look he’s creating a larger-than-life, outrageous alter-ego and speaking in rhythmic rhyme and relying on old, well-known cultural tropes and sometimes delivering a serious message through razor sharp satire. You can see why people think of him as the godfather of rap.” The person you’re talking to might say dismissively, “Oh I hate rap! I never listen to rap!”

There is no denying this movie is crude. I feel like I’m creating this pearl-clutching strawman to be offended by it, but honestly, anybody might reasonably find the material too offensive to enjoy (I suppose).

I guess what I’m saying is, the movie is good, but it’s not for everyone.

Also, while what Moore did as Dolemite was new (though it involved re-imagining familiar elements), what this movie is doing is not new. This is a safe, formulaic film about an innovator. I don’t think that’s really a bad thing. Now I know about Dolemite and feel I understand his work much better than I did before. But make no mistake. This is like watching a by-the-numbers biopic about Picasso. You can’t claim, “I just watched the most innovative art,” just because the safe, predictable movie was about innovative art.

But Murphy gives a fantastic performance, and the movie is thoroughly entertaining (thought-provoking, too).

Overall:

I’m so glad the Alamo Drafthouse was showing Dolemite Is My Name on the big screen because while I could have waited a few days for its Netflix premiere, I needed something to watch in theaters this week that I actually wanted to see. Eddie Murphy gives a fantastic leading performing. Wesley Snipes plays quite a character. I loved Da’Vine Joy Randolph, and enjoyed the rest of the cast in a movie that is funny, touching, and thought-provoking. I’m glad I chose to see Dolemite Is My Name on the big screen. You can watch it at home very soon, but be sure to wait until the kids are in bed.

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