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Monday, December 22, 2014
MOVIE REVIEW
Top Five
A Celebration Of Celebrity, Its Pitfalls And Just Living
Chris Rock
as Andre Allen and Rosario Dawson as Chelsea Brown in "Top Five", which Mr.
Rock wrote and directed.
Paramount Pictures
by
Omar P.L. Moore/PopcornReel.com
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Monday,
December 22,
2014
"Top Five" is top shelf. Chris Rock's finest hour on film, and the best
film he's been part of. Fittingly he wrote and smartly directed "Top
Five", a constantly funny, entertaining vehicle that's always aware of itself
and its star. Some of it feels autobiographical but as I watched "Top
Five" I felt all of it could easily be true about Hollywood celebrity life and
what it entails. (And it probably is.)
Set in New York City, Mr. Rock's native town, "Top Five" evolves during a single
day in the life of Andre Allen (Mr. Rock), a hugely successful movie star and
comedian who has to fend off questions about sequels. Andre has a new
movie out about the Haitian Revolution. He's tapped to marry a reality
television star (Gabrielle Union) who is famous for not much in particular
except for being beautiful.
Andre's personal assistant (JB Smoove) can't believe his charge walks around a
cloudy Manhattan without an umbrella. Andre would rather not be
interviewed by a journalist Chelsea Brown (Rosario Dawson), who has exclusive
time with Andre on this one day in the Big Apple. Insights, revelations,
confessions and episodes from Andre's life burst forth, and the laughs ensue.
Mr. Rock, who has criticized Hollywood's racially homogeneous power brokers and
industry men, has a lot of fun doing the same in "Top Five", which,
incidentally, was produced by Scott Rudin. Mr. Rock's
film is a great rejoinder to the industry, as he puts many Blacks in his film.
You won't see a Hollywood studio film with more cameos of Black people in it in
2014 (or 2015) than "Top Five". (Well, maybe "Selma".)
Of those celebrity cameos is one from Tracy Morgan that's now moving if not sad.
Mr. Morgan still is up to his old, bust-a-gut humorist self.
"Top Five", superbly written by Mr. Rock, is lively and energetic, with its
cutting edge thought-provoking material. Mr. Rock's fine and flavorful
comedy film is about the business of packaging and the truth of surviving the
highs and lows of life as a Black person in a celebrity skin in America.
One powerful scene late on illustrates this to stunning effect. There's a
bite and irony to the scene (as there is throughout) and it resonated and
reverberated with me. It is the singular best, most effective scene in
"Top Five", a film grounded in its people and in crude, sexy and
wildly raucous behavior. (The n-word regrettably, flies around in
high volume, and faster than champagne spray.)
In between laughs are episodes of isolation and mask-dropping. None of the
people in "Top Five" really want to be where they are. They'd rather be
elsewhere. Some are happy. Others are not. All -- well, give
or take -- that glitters is empty and pervades the world Andre tries to stay
sober in. Everything that happens to Andre appears fantastical, farcical,
outsized and artificial, and that's one of the clearest points of "Top Five":
you really wouldn't want to trade places with Andre.
"Top Five" is a wise, perceptive, sometimes devastating look behind the curtain
of celebrity status. Some of it may feel familiar but the way Mr. Rock
tells the story is wholly original, refreshing and hilarious. The film
captures a glimpse of celebrity life in contemporary America, which it embraces
the whole ambit of, along with the intersection of race, money, power and love
-- all laced with a touch of satire.
Conversation is the most impressive thing about "Top Five". Its comfort
level and verite aspect makes its observations and atmospheres authentically
present and vital. Chelsea and Andre's interactions are one long,
fascinating adventure that feels improvised. You never know where their
talk will end. The most enjoyable aspect of "Top Five" is the natural
chemistry of Ms. Dawson and Mr. Rock. Ms. Dawson in particular, is
stellar, and all those in the director's film are terrific.
The depth and sincerity of "Top Five" and Andre Allen's wildly funny experiences
is gratifying. The film isn't a run-of-the-mill celebrity introspective.
What Andre says and experiences lingers beyond any scene. Still, Andre can
have fun and deliver the wit, humor and stinging truths Mr. Rock himself rattles
off. Andre enjoys living more than he enjoys his life, and "Top Five" is
an infectious journey full of living enjoyed and celebrated. There's
warmth, familiarity and a continous congregation of people across class lines
cherishing the joy and purity that simply living affords them, regardless of
circumstance. They don't take these moments for granted.
The film's anthem is its title, a repeated punch line for your choice of best
five rap artists. The top five lists cited in "Top Five" are an endearing
note of pop culture and generational referencing, and a chance for the
moviegoing audience to directly participate. The top five refrain feels
like a rebuke of those music entertainment writers in the late 1970s and early
1980s who swore rap music would be a thing of the past. (How wrong they
were.)
Oh, and my reworked top five?
1. Rakim
2. Tupac Shakur
3. Big Daddy Kane
4. Slick Rick
5. Kurtis Blow
What's yours? editor@popcornreel.com
Also with: A lot of familiar faces whose names you know. Let each of their
appearances be a surprise to you.
"Top Five" is rated R by the Motion Picture Association for strong
sexual content, nudity, crude humor, language throughout and some drug use. Its running time is
one
hour and 42 minutes.
COPYRIGHT 2014. POPCORNREEL.COM. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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