A comedy about finding true love, “Coming to America” is a familiar story and is a fun comedy and gives lots of laughs, mainly thanks to Eddie Murphy’s comedy.
A rich man hiding in cheap clothing to find a woman who would love him without his money is a love story as old as time. Ace Black said in his review, “Coming To America distracts from the obvious by injecting its central theme with another ancient plot device, the worlds-apart culture clash.” Prince Akeem, played by Eddie Murphy, is next to secure the throne of Zamunda, a fictional African country. Raised in beautiful luxury at the hidden royal palace, and never having to earn anything, Akeem is turning 21 and his parents King Joffe (James Earl Jones) and Queen Aeoleon (Madge Sinclair) have arranged a bride for him to marry (Vanessa Bell).
Unhappy at being spoiled his entire life, Akeem decides to change tradition, refuses to listen to his parents, and goes to America with his personal aid Semmi, played by host and comedian Arsenio Hall, to find his true love. Since they are looking for a future queen, they fly to Queens, New York to find Akeem’s queen. They rent a downgraded apartment, pretend to be poor, and take jobs as floor cleaners at McDowell’s, a fast-food restaurant run by Cleo McDowell, played by John Amos. Cleo’s smart and loving daughter Lisa, played by Shari Headley, is found beautiful by Akeem and he decides to choose her. Akeem needs to fight against Lisa’s egotistical boyfriend Darryl, played by Eriq La Salle, complaints from a homesick Semmi, and an ineptly desperate try at intervention by King Joffe and Queen Aeoleon, before he can find himself his own future queen.
Ace Black mentioned, “Eddie Murphy wrote the story, and he keeps the laughs coming with welcome good timing and some rather tiresome over-exuberance. He receives good support from Jones, whose booming voice and haughty personality are perfectly suited to the role of a domineering king. In one of his more memorable big-screen roles, Arsenio Hall is also excellent in the role of the side-kick who is too quick to harken for the comforts of home and even quicker to pretend to be Prince when it suits him.”
Ace Black continued, “Coming To America does suffer from Murphy always looking more comfortable in New York than the flagrantly artificial dream world of Zamunda, and once Akeem and Semmi settle into New York and the pursuit of Lisa begins, the plot is fixed onto the sturdy rails of predictability all the way through to the sugary ending. Director John Landis has the easy task of keeping his cameras pointing in the right direction, and allowing his star to do his thing.”
“Coming to America” is a movie for Murphy at his prime: it doesn’t have the originality of unpredictability or any type of edge, but nevertheless works as a movie for his comedic talent.
Arriving 33 years after the smash hit “Coming to America,” this sequel feels like it went dry during the long making. It re-introduces everyone to Prince Akeem, who is still living happy with his beloved Lisa and their three daughters (KiKi Layne, Billa Murphy, and Akiley Love). (Jeffrey M. Anderson said in his review, “Thank goodness the producers weren't gauche enough to replace Headley with someone younger and prettier.”) Akeem becomes the king of Zamunda after his father passes away, and immediately has trouble, according to the traditions and laws of the country, he must have a male heir.
He learns that when he was in America in 1988, he was drugged and had a one night stand with Mary Junson (Leslie Jones) and actually has a son, Lavelle (Jermaine Fowler). So Akeem and his faithful aid Semmi go to America once again to get Mary and Lavelle. Back in Zamunda, the newcomers have fun with their recent fortune for a little bit, and then Lavelle is told he must marry Bopoto (Teyana Taylor), daughter of General Izzi (Wesley Snipes), to make peace between the two countries. However, like the first movie, Lavelle falls in love with hairdresser Mirembe, played by Nomzamo Mbatha, who has more personality than the obedient Bopoto.
Akeem then must find a way to stay up-to-date and allow women to be in power, seeing that his eldest daughter, Meeka (KiKi Layne), is ready and willing to become queen. Anderson said, “This plot essentially locks Murphy into an inflexible role, making it next to impossible for him to be funny, while Fowler becomes the movie's uninteresting "main" character.” Other attempts to be funny, like revisiting the famous barbershop (Murphy, Hall, and Clint Smith play the famous roles in the shop), feel forced.
Anderson said, “What's really missing is the personal touch that director John Landis brought to the original; his odd rhythms and staging wrought R-rated laughs where there might not have been any. Current director Craig Brewer — whose other Eddie Murphy movie Dolemite Is My Name is excellent — seems to be working as if on too much cold medication, turning in a sluggish, bland PG-13 film with no personality.” Keeping watching to spot cameo appearances and some product placement for Pepsi and McDonalds.
The first movie is a comedy classic that still holds up perfectly to this day. The sequel is fine, seeing how the first one took place mostly in Queens and the sequel mainly in Zamunda, with a beautiful look and still having the comedy, but the story is basically the same. If you have an Amazon Prime and you want to see the sequel, you can if you want and will enjoy it fine. Make sure to see the first movie before seeing the sequel.
Thank you for joining in on tonight’s review. Stay tuned next Friday for the continuation of “Chris Farley Month.”
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