Undercover Brother (2002)
Grade: B
Cast: Eddie Griffin, Chris Kattan, Denise Richards, Aunjanue Ellis, Dave Chappelle, Neil Patrick Harris, Chi McBride
Director: Malcolm D. Lee
Rated PG-13 for language, sexual humor, comic violence, drug content


When "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery" was released in 1997, it inspired a wave of catchphrases and various other associations to it. Now comes the first real rip-off: "Undercover Brother." But it deserves much more credit than that, as it isn’t an all-out rip-off of "Austin Powers"; it’s only been stereotyped that way. Often called ‘a black Austin Powers’, "Undercover Brother" is a hilariously funny exaggeration of race and the lengths gone to to prevent it. Too bad it isn’t making any money, because this franchise would definitely rival the Powers franchise in quality.

Anton Jackson (Eddie Griffin) is a black man secretly working for the B.R.O.T.H.E.R.H.O.O.D. (not sure what it stands for, but maybe I was in the bathroom when it was explained), a black organization thwarting efforts from The Man (the evil white organization) to wipe out blacks entirely. The main man in The Man’s current effort, Operation Whitewash, is Mr. Feather (Chris Kattan, hilarious as he goes into involuntary Ebonics-speaking fits), who has drugged a major black figure. The drug now has him talking like a white guy, and selling chicken at his restaurant that contains the very same drug. Sent by The Man as a distraction, Penelope Snow/White She-Devil (Denise Richards) is currently romancing Anton, and it seems to be working. Will he forget about his…er…blackness?

All of this sounds complicated and kind of stupid in description, and it is potentially offensive, but director Malcolm D. Lee plays it all lightly, without ever losing a comedic grace that is ultimately the source of the film’s cheerfully amiable resonance. He does the exact opposite of what sometimes sinks his cousin Spike’s films: he doesn’t take race so seriously to come off as a Caucasian-hater. Lee (Malcolm, that is) knows exactly what to do with the material, and his directorial success ultimately pays off. He proves, as what was allegedly not proved in Tom Green’s "Freddy Got Fingered," that any serious subject matter can be funny if handled correctly.

Some of the brilliance in "Undercover Brother" is the sheer stupidity of its gags. Neil Patrick Harris’ character is called a wimp, and he proceeds to basically kill the guys, ripping out their organs and spraying their blood all over the place. All of this is undeniably funny, thanks to the direction and whatever else you want to acknowledge, but it is admittedly stupid. Even more of the brilliance of "Undercover Brother" is how smart some of the gags are. Anton is getting more and more into his geeky undercover persona, and one scene has him over at Penelope’s house enjoying Michael Bolton’s version of the “Thong Song." The film, rotating between great intelligence and perfect stupidity, is a lumbering contradiction; in that way, it reminds me of Ben Stiller’s wicked satire/Dumb & Dumber-genre stoopid komadee "Zoolander." And that’s a compliment.

One of the greatest assets of the "Austin Powers" movies is the fantastically funny ensemble cast, and the same could be applied to "Undercover Brother." Denise Richards is unbelievably and indescribably beautiful to look at, and though she isn’t much of an actress, she fares better than "The Spy Who Shagged Me"’s Heather Graham. She’s prettier but not as dominating as the fairly impressive Aunjanue Ellis, who plays Anton’s partner. Chris Kattan, as I mentioned above, is very, very funny. His whole character would not be out of place on a sketch of “SNL,” but that didn’t keep me from acknowledging the cleverness the screenplay had in creating him. Dave Chappelle, the paranoid Conspiracy Brother, gets lots of laughs as well. Hell, even Neil Patrick Harris as Lance, a white guy working for the B.R.O.T.H.E.R.H.O.O.D., is decent. The biggest disappointment is Eddie Griffin. He’s funny, I guess, but he just isn’t Eddie Griffin, the scene-stealing supporting player from other films (I regret to inform you that he is funnier in "Double Take"). I submit advice to Mr. Griffin: play supporting roles. I laughed more a couple of weeks ago when you were in The New Guy. It’s a good thing the rest of the film was so great, because you ultimately fell flat.

But in other words, I’m recommending "Undercover Brother" on the basis of its spirited cast, its skilled direction, its ironic but nonetheless catchy soundtrack, and its script, filled with bitingly funny one-liners and in-jokes. It isn’t perfect (it starts out a little shaky and has some flaws in pacing), but it’s a great time.


-Alex, July 2002