Barbershop 2: Back in Business - PG-13
Common Sense Note
There is some spicy talk in the movie and some very strong language. There are earthy sexual jokes and references and a non-explicit sexual situation. Characters break into a business and do some social drinking. But overall the movie has very strong, positive values about the importance of family and community.
Families who see this movie could talk about how they choose the places they do business. Do you go to the big national chains or do you seek out small local companies? They could also talk about some of the history shown in the movie and their own experiences during the 1960's.
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Nell Minow
Just as with the original in 2002, Calvin (Ice Cube) knows that the Chicago barbershop he inherited from his father plays a central role in the community. Money is always tight, but he manages to find a way to help out anyone who needs it. The South Side neighborhood is changing, even getting gentrified. Calvin is glad to see more jobs, money, and tax revenues coming in, but worries that the history and personality of the community will be lost in a sea of chain stores like Kinko's and Subway.
This becomes a much more serious problem when a chain barbershop called Nappy Cutz puts up an "opening soon" sign across the street. Just as in the original, Calvin must decide whether he will sell out.
And just as in the first one, the pleasures of the movie are in the give and take between the denizens of the barbershop: Terri (rap star Eve), Jimmy (Sean Patrick Thomas) now working for an alderman, Ricky (Michael Ealy), the one-time convict who seems to be hiding something, Nigerian immigrant Dinka (Leonard Howze), still trying to settle into American life, white barber Isaac (Troy Garrity), so successful they call him the Eminem of hair-cutting, and, most of all, Eddie (Cedric the Entertainer), whose never-ending stream-of-consciousness set of opinions don't leave much time to cut hair. They are joined by Calvin's cousin-in-law, Kenard (Kenan Thompson), just out of barber school. And there are some visits from Queen Latifah, giving us a sneak peek at her spin-off movie, Beauty Salon, scheduled for later in 2004.
The conversations are a delight, especially compared to the fake-hipness of most portrayals of African Americans. This movie lets us listen in on conversations that are not just very funny; they feel much more authentic in the frank treatment of race, as the characters debate who they can "take credit for" and which white people they would be willing to have sex with. The group discusses their disappointment in finding out that the DC sniper was black ("like the Jackie Robinson of crime") and the way the media portrays bi-racial celebrities. They debate what race Jesus was, and a woman explains that he is "Cablanasian, like Tiger Woods." A furious woman tells the man who cheated on her, "I'm gonna get both my baby's daddys to jump on your ass!" Calvin explains to his baby that poor black people will always be asking him for money and that he won't know they're poor at first because they will dress very nicely.
The movie also provides some historical context. We see how Eddie first came to the barbershop, and how he and Calvin's father stayed on through meetings of the Black Panther and the riots after Dr. Martin Luther King's assassination.
Parents should know that there is some spicy talk in the movie and some very strong language. There are earthy sexual jokes and references and a non-explicit sexual situation. Characters break into a business and do some social drinking. But overall the movie has very strong, positive values about the importance of family and community.
Families who see this movie could talk about how they choose the places they do business. Do you go to the big national chains or do you seek out small local companies? They could talk about some of the history shown in the movie and their own experiences during the 1960's.
Families who see this movie may also enjoy the original Barbershop or Spike Lee's first film, Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop: We Cut Heads. They might also enjoy another movie about people who spend a lot of time getting their hair done, Steel Magnolias.
Rate It!
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Sexual ContentSexual references, mostly humorous, kissing, non-explicit sexual situation. |
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ViolenceMob violence, some shoving and confrontations. |
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LanguageSome very strong language. |
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Social BehaviorA theme of the movie. |
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Drug/Alcohol/TobaccoDrinking. |
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