Customer Reviews

Barbershop [UMD for PSP]

5 star:		(57)
4 star:		(37)
3 star:		(18)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

With the terrible smear review that was given by Jessie Jackson and others on this politically incorrect film, it only seem fitting to view this myself and see what the fuss was over.This is a great film. Honest, fresh, funny, emotional, soul sturring and just great plain entertaining. In this new modern world with movies that have to have special effects or sex scenes that have nothing to do with the story or mass murders with lots of blood and guts, it's refreshing to see a motion picture that is based on just a good script and actors that can deliver and keep the audience transfixed on the screen. Now that is talent! You will not be disappointed by this film unless of course your part of the modern generation that is basically brain dead and won't know anything about culture unless in came in the form of a drug.One of the great things about this movie is "thinking for yourself, America." Again, this is a great film for ALL people.

Renting this movie last weekend was the first time I had actually seen it, and I can't believe Jesse Jackson and his followers actually took offense to the lines referring to Rosa Parks and the Civil Rights movement in it. Of all people you would expect to get the point, and have the poetry of the script revealed to!

The point of the entire movie can be summed up in a monologue by Cedric the Entertainer (who is about as good as it gets in this role and in this movie), where he says the barbershop--which the owner (Ice Cube's character), while caught in a moral dilemma, is preparing to sell--is more than just a place where brothers can get their hair cut. Each and every barbershop in every city and inner city in America, from Harlem to Oakland (and around the world too; I've been to several African-owned shops in Germany, Holland and Italy), is like Sam's bar on CHEERS: they are "the Black man's country club". And in that country club, a brother can get a line, a skin-fade, a shape-up, a little trim of the beard or goatee...and rediscover the royalty of his inner being while in conversation with friends and strangers about virtually anything. As a matter of fact, the beauty of the so-called controversial lines in the movie about Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King (not to mention those about Rodney King and O.J. Simpson) triumphantly proclaim one of the best things about the Barbershop: where else can Black men hold such strong, divergent or even culturally iconoclastic opinions and have them be respected--or even heard?

The movie is a little short on character development. The sub-plot starts getting too ridiculous after the first fifteen minutes. And as good as Ice Cube is he is still growing as an actor, making me wish he were making this movie five years from now as opposed to almost a year ago. Just the same, the wealth of characters and acting in the movie give all the real local Barbershops across the world a three-dimensional tableau of a tribute via the fine acting talents of all involved and some truly wonderful (and wonderfully ridiculous) moments in the script. Actors in this movie (like the fine character actor as loneshark Keith David, whose voiceover voice is becoming more famous than he is) are seriously funny, while comedians like Cedric the Entertainer are sometimes borderline spellbinding in how serious they demand you take them as actors.

Anyone who isn't a Black man (and that includes the sisters) should see this movie and laugh unapologetically. Anyone who is, should first get a shape-up down the block, share what they think of the Iraq war and Halle Berry in spandex with the barber in the next chair... and then after you tip your boy right, buy this movie immediately.

Calvin Palmer has a pregnant wife, some big dreams, and a barbershop he inherited from his father and his grandfather before him that he doesn't particularly want. Seems Calvin yearns for bigger and better things, like having his own recording studio. But when he contracts with a local loan shark to sell the barbershop to finance his pie-in-the-sky schemes, Calvin is brought up short by the realization of how much the barbershop means to his employees, his customers and his community. Because the local barbershop in a black neighborhood is an institution, a place where the guys can come in, kick back, trade news and views and feel at home. Calvin realizes he's made a terrible mistake. But how to rectify it? The loan shark plans to turn the barbershop into a strip joint and he wants double the selling price to sell it back. There's a lot of moving and shaking and a hysterically funny subplot involving a stolen ATM before this film reaches its conclusion.

The cast is excellent all around. Ice Cube is wonderful as Calvin, who doesn't know what a treasure his family has owned for three generations until he's about to lose it. I thought Eve was very effective as Terri Jones, the lady barber who has had it up to here with her no-good two-timing boyfriend. Anthony Anderson is hilarious as JD, probably the dumbest would-be robber who ever hijacked an empty ATM. But the big draw in this film is Cedric the Entertainer as Eddie, with a leonine head of hair that looks like he stuck a wet finger in an electric socket, pontificating and philosophizing, offering up insights and chunks of wisdom that are sharp as a razor and devastatingly funny. The movie feels totally real; we're right there inside the barbershop, kicking back along with the cast and enjoying every second. It's a film with a lot of warmth and a lot of heart, and not a dull moment in it. We leave this movie feeling it's life's intangibles that really count.

Judy Lind

Barbershop is a very good look into the epicenter of the urban community, or what many recognize as the congregation center for male communication. This feature film from the team who brought us Soul Food, weaves the largest plot (keeping or selling the handed-down establishment) to the smallest plot (the bumbling antics of two very bad crooks). In the end, viewers will leave Barbershop with a belly full of laughs and a heart full of love.

The plot centers on Ice Cube's character that inherits the barbershop from his deceased father. Recognizing the tremendous debt that he is now responsible for, he can only see the shop as a burden. Ignoring the real value the barbershop holds as an age-old institution in the community, he accepts an offer from a neighborhood loan shark who plans to turn the barbershop into a strip joint.

With a superbly talented and diverse cast, Barbershop features some notable performances. Cedric the Entertainer reaches new comic heights as the 70-year-old barber turned mentor to the crew of "Gen-X" barbers. Rapstress Eve plays the only female barber with the occasional stank attitude that arises from either someone in the shop drinking her apple juice or the actions of her cheating boyfriend. Stepping out of his typical tough-guy characters, Ice Cube also hits the jackpot with this juicy role as a tormented man always looking for that next big break.

Watching the film and hearing the dialogue between the characters will remind male viewers of past barbershop experiences from childhood to adulthood. These experiences include everything from the older men who are fixtures within the barbershop, to the heated "topic of the day" that everyone weighs in on. And of course, no comment is ever spoken in soft tones.

Without giving anything away, Barbershop is a must see, must support film by all. If you ever wanted a taste of what goes on in your neighborhood barbershop, check this film out. It has everything but the pool table and the weight set in the back room!

It is so refreshing to see a movie without blood and guts and shooting but with an urban theme. The story revolves around a makeshift family of barbers headed by a young man who has to live up to his father's legacy but yet has dreams of his own. The movie has everything...there's a hero, a villain, and two hapless smash-and-grabbers are the comic relief. There are tender moments, also. I found the scene where the old barber gives a lesson to the younger ones very moving. Ice Cube has really come into his own, and I'm happy to see him play a less violent character than usual. It's a step up for him. Cedric is phenomenal, and outdoes Eddie Murphy when it comes to playing an older character. Best of all, the hero comes out on top! I left the theater feeling really good.

When a person sees a film that's based on unfamiliar characters, culturally speaking, the potential arises for getting hung up on certain things. People somewhat familiar with urban culture, like myself, know that we grow up hearing a lot of foul language. But if I can watch a movie like My Big Fat Wedding and not get hung up on kids being spit on for luck and enjoy the story anyway, I think that all but the most puritan of white people can enjoy Barbershop if they can relate to a guy who just wants to do the right thing for his family...including his extended family in the shop. This is another great ethnic feel-good movie, it won't get nominated for anything, and I don't care! When this is out on video, it'll be a welcome addition to my collection.

I didn't bother to see this movie in the theater because I was convinced I would despise it. I'm one of the few people I know who absolutely hated Friday and figured since Ice Cube was in this movie it was probably more of the same. The Rosa Parks/Martin Luther King controversy surrounding the film didn't help either. But since my friends kept encouraging me to see it, I rented it.

Well it turns out that I really liked this movie. It's sweet and for the most part very true to real life. Every actor is dead on perfect and the conversations/debates among the characters including the Rosa Parks and reparations arguments are not unusual in the African American community. Critics of that particular segment of the movie need to remember that Black people are not monolithic in their opinions and experiences.

The entire cast was perfect. I admit I've had my reservations about Ice Cube since his days with NWA but he was a charming leading man in this role. Cedric the Entertainer as Eddie reminds me of some folks I've known. Eve brought a sweetness to and was surprisingly effective in her part. But can Anthony Anderson please do another role besides the loud, fat guy? Thanks in advance.

Oh and I must mention how I loved the Got to Give It Up and I'll Take You There segments. Reminds me of my childhood.

The extra features are cool...it was great seeing the old haircuts from the 80s and early 90s. Good job to everyone involved.

When Barbershop first came out, I was a bit skeptical. I didn't know how well Ice Cube could act, and didn't know how long a movie about a barbershop could hold my interest.
I was pleasantly surprised.
In Barbershop, Ice Cube plays Calvin Palmer, a barber who took over his father's barbershop when he passed away. The shop is in a lot of debt, and with his wife expecting, Calvin has to do something to get some money. So he sells the shop to a shady loan shark, Lester Wallace (Keith David). When he realizes how much the shop means to the community, and himself, he has to get it back.
Now, it may not sound like much there, but Barbershop is truly a good movie. It seems as though the main theme of Calvin selling the shop takes a backseat to the conversation and interaction in the shop itself. This is a good thing. The supporting characters in the shop are both believable and likeable. Sean Patrick Thomas plays Jimmy James, an egocentric know-it-all with a smooth haircut. Michael Ealy is Ricky Nash, a two-time felon who is given the opportunity to clean up his act. Eve, the rapper, plays Terri, a sharp-tongued girl who's not afraid to get up in someone's face. And Cedric the Entertainer's performance as Eddie, who worked with Calvin's father, ranks among one of the most enjoyable performances of 2002. On the whole, it is the supporting cast, not Ice Cube, that makes this movie more than just average.
What detracts from Barbershop is a slow-moving side plot about two guys (Anthony Anderson and Lahmard Tate) stealing an ATM from a convenience store down the street from Calvin's. Both actors are good, but the whole thing was silly and largely unnecessary. Its relevance doesn't become clear until the end of the film.
Overall, Barbershop was surprisingly good. It elicited more than a few laughs from me, and is sure to appeal to anyone. With a great supporting cast and a dynamic, funny script, Barbershop is well worth adding to your collection.

It was difficult for me to believe that a day in the life of a barbershop could be as enjoyable a movie as this turned out to be. The main action involves the barbershop that Calvin (Ice Cube) inherited from his father and how it seems incompatible with his dreams of success. The secondary plot involves several comedic scenes about a stolen ATM machine; this part of the story is cleverly interwoven into the resolution of Calvin's problems at the conclusion.
The story turns political correctness regarding race on its ear in only the way a black cast could. This includes a great illustration of reverse discrimination since the young white barber cannot convince any of the blacks that he can cut their hair. It also takes on such icons as Jesse Jackson and even Rosa Parks through humor rather than diatribe. Of course, the barbershop has been the neighborhood black social club for generations, and now it's existence is threatened. There are many twists and turns to the story and great character development of several of the minor parts. However, Cedric the Entertainer as the sage of the previous generation and bridge to the present staels the show in my opinion.
Definitely worth seeing if you want to both laugh and think while watching a movie where goodness and right eventually triumph and the value of friendship is reaffirmed.
I did not rate it five stars because while the lack of violence was very refreshing the language was unneccessarily offensive at times. Also, while I tremendously enjoyed the movie it was not so good that I would want to see it several times or purchase it on DVD.

Yeah, the humor gets a bit raw and crude at times, but overall, I liked this movie. Everyone who has been to a Black barbershop (or ANY local gathring place, with minor differences in culture and dialogue) can vouch for the accuracy. Without spoiling it for those who haven't seen it, it's actually a nice story about people in a Chicago ghetto who, in spite of a lot of trash talking and insults, really form an unoffical family and care about each other.

As for Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton's complains about this film, one of the actors in a recent interview noted that all that did was help them sell more tickets, as is often the case with controversial films.

I had no idea I would laugh this hard when I went to see this movie. Every character in this film is a delight!! It is basically about a man that owns this barbershop which he inherited from his father but he starts having some financial problems. In his distress, he decides to sell it to a dishonest no-good man after the man promises to keep it a barber shop. What the owner didn't know is the buyer was planning on making it into a strip club. So, he quickly changes his mind and has to fight to get his barber shop back. Meanwhile, all of his friends and employees are in the shop and it takes place in like a 24 hour period. It is wonderful!! Some parts are warm hearted and tender, some are hilarous, and some really make you mad. I highly recommend this film for I cannot imagine anyone not liking it. It was great!! I am counting down to the release of the somewhat talked about sequel!