NEXT FRIDAY
As in Friday, Cube's role is mainly that of straight-man, but
this time Tucker's wasted Smokey is replaced by Mike Epps's frenetic homeboy
Day-Day. Cube's character, Craig, goes to visit his cousin, who left South
Central for this posh neighborhood when his dad (Don "D.C." Curry)
hit the lotto and won a million dollars. While there, Craig and Day-Day
get in trouble with Day-Day's pregnant girlfriend (Tamala Jones), his pimplike
boss (Clifton Powell), and his drug-selling Latino neighbors (Jacob Vargas,
Lobo Sebastian, and Rolando Molina). At the film's end, Day-Day asks Craig,
"when can I come visit you and [mess] up your neighborhood?" Craig
replies, "You can't."
This film, while genuinely funny on a few occasions, has the mentality
of a Cheech and Chong movie. Most of the humor derives from overblown ethnic
stereotypes, drug abuse, and sexism. While Epps is running frantically from
the diminutive-but-furious Jones, Cube is making flirtatious advances at
the next-door bad-boys' sister (Lisa Rodríguez). Or maybe that should
be spelled "seeester." Half-baked subplots involve Craig's newly
rich uncle and his busty sexpot girlfriend (Kim Whitley) getting kinky with
whips and chains, and his dog-catcher dad (John Witherspoon) speeding down
the highway with two criminal escapees hiding in the back of his truck (Tiny
Lister and Sticky Fingaz), and a bad case of diarrhea. Not to mention the
spliff-smoking party the guys share with Day-Day's co-worker (Justin Pierce),
using a vacuum cleaner to suck up the telltale smoke. Smart stuff, eh?
Virtually nothing memorable happens in Next Friday, but it will afford its market (mainly black teens) a mindless romp through homeboy comedy, a rap soundtrack, and a break from the doldrums of early-year film releases. ***½