“Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins” (Universal Pictures)
The Prodigal Son Returns
Martin Lawrence stars in the new film “Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins” and proves himself to be both a very funny man and one who can also be serious and sensitive. The show is a celebration of what family means – the good, the bad and the ugly. If the film had restrained itself against an overabundance of crudeness it could have been an even bigger success.
Lawrence plays Roscoe Jenkins, a man with a successful TV talk show in the Jerry Springer mode. He has a son named Jamaal (Damani Roberts) of whom he is neglectful, and a fiance’ named Bianca (Joy Bryant) who monopolizes his time. Bianca was on the TV show “Survivor” and she has been playing that game ever since.
Roscoe’s parents are celebrating their fiftieth wedding anniversary and insist he come home for the party weekend. Roscoe agrees and he, Jamaal and Bianca make the trek to Georgia. It is the first time he has been home in nine years. Once there he is reunited with his sister Betty (Mo’Nique), his brother Otis (Michael Clarke Duncan), his cousin Reggie (Mike Epps) and his nemesis Clyde (Cedric the Entertainer).
Roscoe is warmly welcomed by his mother (Margaret Avery) but his father (James Earl Jones) still seems to refer Clyde to him. Clyde also arrives at the festivities with a woman named Lucinda (Nicole Ari Parker) in tow. This was a girl Roscoe loved in high school and he is still smarting from the fact Clyde seemed to take her away from him.
The ins and outs of the family dynamic are explored in much detail and the result is heartfelt feelings as well as hilarity. Each character in the film gets a time to shine but Lawrence’s Roscoe gets the most attention.
Lawrence is at his best in this film. He hasn’t lost his comic touch but he has added new maturity as an actor. Joy Bryant makes the most of her role as the “bad guy.” She is as egotistical and obnoxious as can be but still entertaining. Cedric the Entertainer steals the show as much as possible but he has to battle Mo’Nique to do that often. She is at her bodacious best.
The movie is rated PG-13 for profanity, and crudeness. That is a very liberal rating for this movie.
The film ends on a heart-warming note and should have sent the audience out with a warm glow. EXCEPT, there are clips during the credits that are as raw and raunchy as anything in the film and more. These afterthoughts spoil what is a positive feeling about the “family” in the film. My advice, leave as soon as the credits start.
I scored “Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins” a heartfelt 6 out of 10.
