COMEDY - THE WRITERS: HONEYMOON IN VEGAS, WHITE MEN CAN'T JUMP
him into trouble.
Just as Shelton knew baseball was often about ritual, he understands playground basketball is often about entertainment and bragging. Although Billy's assertion that black players would rather look good than make the shot is false, it's true that the playground hustlers see each shot as a thing of beauty (the fact that one of them (Kadeem Hardison) quotes Keats on that is all the funnier). Cotrasting that, of course, is the trash talk, which, in time-honored tradition, is about insulting the other guy's mother. Mostly, Shelton understands this is just for show, though he also shows how it can be used as a weapon (when Sidney points out two tough players they'll be playing against, Billy's first move, naturally, is to insult them, on the theory the madder they get, the worse they'll play). And though a couple of the games have too much slow motion and choreography, Shelton otherwise films them just right, up close and herky-jerky, making them more compelling, and authentic, than most sports movies.
After BULL DURHAM, it admittedly is disconcerting to see the one strong female character of that movie split in two, and you find yourself wanting more of Rhonda and Gloria. Ferrell has terrific chemistry with Snipes, while at the same time making you understand her guff comes from the wanting a better life (when Sidney waffles over buying a house because of the price, she cuts him short with a simple "I need this" speech). Gloria makes you wonder, as the best writing does, whether Shelton wrote the part specifically for Perez, as she glides effortlessly through it. As for the two leads, Harrelson is again playing off of his Woody personality of "Cheers," showing how the hick front is just a front, while also revealing how he still has much to learn (to his credit, he's the first to admit that at the end). Snipes shows Sidney's trash talk and ballplaying skills, but also the fierce intelligence behind them.
Some assumed from the title of the movie, and even after seeing it, that Shelton's movie was racist, which is bizarre. It's the black people in this movie who are smart and together, and who are looking forward. And Shelton understands this too, which is why WHITE MEN CAN'T JUMP is not only funny, but thoughtful.
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