Comedies about racism risk trivializing the issue on the one hand or becoming preachy and dull on the other. Amos & Andrew manages to do both.
Amos & Andrew (1993)
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Reviews Counted:22
Fresh:5
Rotten:17
Average Rating:4.1/10
Runtime: 1 hr 36 mins
Genre: Comedies
Synopsis: This racially-charged farce stars Nicolas Cage and Samuel L. Jackson. When Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Andrew - who happens to be black - is seen entering a resort mansion by a bigoted police... This racially-charged farce stars Nicolas Cage and Samuel L. Jackson. When Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Andrew - who happens to be black - is seen entering a resort mansion by a bigoted police chief, the chief mistakenly assumes he is breaking in. Fearing Andrew has hostages, the chief calls out the cavalry. But the playwright actually owns the home. By the time the chief realizes his mistake, it's too late. A cast of characters, including a fire-and-brimstone breathing black preacher, a nosy couple, and a namby-pamby hostage negotiator, have already set up camp on the playwright's lawn. The chief compounds matters by ordering a jailbird car thief, Amos, to pretend to be the "real" menace in return for freedom. But Amos gets more than he bargained for when he's forced to match wits with the sophisticated Andrew for control of the mansion. [More]
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Samuel L. Jackson, Dabney Coleman, Michael Lerner
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Samuel L. Jackson, Dabney Coleman, Michael Lerner, Brad Dourif, Giancarlo Esposito, Margaret Colin
Director: E. Max Frye
Director: E. Max Frye
Reviews for Amos & Andrew
The title sounds like a bad joke - Amos & Andrew. Unfortunately, the movie is just as bad.
Cage is a font of funny character weirdness. This movie marks the least of his offerings. Jackson, as the relative straight man, has little to work with.
If nothing else, at least the movie offers laughs without being offensive.
Cage is the only actor allowed to do riffs on his assigned part, something he takes full advantage of; the others are stuck with their two-dimensional satirical profiles, which grow increasingly tiresome and unyielding.
Amos & Andrew is a better-than-average comedy that's likable enough while unfolding but evaporative when over.
Although the movie strives mightily to teach its lesson, which is that you cannot judge a man by the color of his skin, the humor is undermined by the sadness of the basic situation.
A hhandicapped satirical farce whose roots are not in life but in other, better movies and sitcoms.
A very funny little film with big pleasures, and a most promising debut.
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