[Movie Review] Top Five (2014)
Director: Chris Rock
Writer: Chris Rock
Runtime: 101 min
Main Cast:
- Chris Rock as Andre Allen
- Gabrielle Union as Erica Long
- Rosario Dawson as Chelsea Brown
Review: by The Superior Spider-Sam
I think Chris Rock is hilarious, and the trailer for this movie made me laugh out loud. Why wouldn’t I see it?
What I Liked:
The Comedy
Let’s get this out of the way. This movie was HILARIOUS! I mean I could write this whole review only focusing on the jokes of this film. From the opening line, jokes were flying as we see the two main characters Chelsea and Andre (Rosario Dawson and Chris Rock) walking down the street discussing how the world has changed for the better. Andre was so skeptical that he believed no black man can hail a cab, and attempted to prove his point only to have a cab stop for him. What worked for this film was that it wasn’t filled with one brand of comedy. No matter what you are into, YOU WILL LAUGH. There’s situational comedy, true open mic stand-up comedy (which Chris Rock performed remarkably), and story-telling.
Also, you all know that sheer comedy element that arises whenever any of us are in a large gathering of our family? Well, seeing Andre and his family (which included Tracy Morgan and Jay Pharaoh) act erratic in their apartment during dinner captured that.
The Acting and Story
I cannot remember a comedy ever making me feel as much as this one did. When it was funny, it was funny, but there were scenes in this movie that really did pull at the heart strings; and, the ENTIRE cast acted immensely well. Chris Rock should be commended for his directing. The main story involved Andre, a comedian who made it big with the box office hit “Hammy the Bear” (again hilarious). Andre wanted to be taken more seriously and released a movie about a Haitian Revolution. Chealsea (Rosario Dawson) was a reporter assigned to review his new “serious” film and was granted an interview in order to see inside the real life of Andre. Also, Andre was dealing with the spectacle of his soon to be televised wedding to a self-obsessed reality star (excellently acted by Gabrielle Union).
What the trailers did not show was that Andre was also a recovering alcoholic, and the stress of the movie release, interview, and wedding were all hard to deal with. Again, Chris Rock nailed this role. His acting chops were on full display. I actually felt as if I were there, and found myself caring for Andre’s well-being.
Admittedly, after the climax, I actually found myself at times more interested in knowing how the story would move forward than I was in getting a laugh.
The Cameos
Let me wrap up what could go on forever of scene by scene praise by just stating a few cameos in this film: Taraji p Henson, Romany Malco, Tracy Morgan, Cedric the Entertainer, Adam Sandler, Whoopie Goldberg, Jerry Seinfeld and DMX (in what had to be some of the best scenes of the film)!
What I Didn’t Like:
If I have to pick something, it’s going to be petty. The title “Top 5” referred to each character’s list of Top 5 Rappers. It’s an opinion, but, come on, Chelsea’s list was not cool. She had Kanye and no Jay…what!!
Summary
Honestly, the 5 minutes of stand-up comedy are worth the ticket price alone. It was truly refreshing. Writer, director and actor Chris Rock needs a nod at the Golden Globes for this. It was a great movie that was both hilarious and heart wrenching, and this is about to be history people. I don’t give these out often (in fact never – not even for The Good Wife), but Top Five gets a 5 out of 5.
User Review
( votes)Images Courtesy of IMDB
