I can't figure out when I missed the important announcement -- you know, about film noir being the next big thing in moviemaking. It must be since last week we were subjected to "Palmetto" being released in the theaters, and this week we have "Caught Up." For those unsure about the term, "film noir," it usually describes movies where a dimwitted or weak-willed man falls under the spell of a sexy siren who has plans that will make her rich and land him in jail or the cemetery as the token patsy.
Okay, so this film isn't a true entry in the film noir genre -- it's something more of a hybrid between the real thing and one of those goofy movies that spoofs a certain genre, like the "Airplane" or "Naked Gun" movies. It does, however, have many of the prerequisite elements needed to quality for that classification.
We have a down on his luck guy who can't find a job. He then happens across a beautiful, curvaceous, and seductively alluring woman who lands him in bed. The fact that he can't keep his zipper in the up position gets him in trouble as the woman turns out to have a diabolical plan for him. As it unfolds, the man finds himself in an ever downwardly spiraling melee of complications that become more deadly as the story progresses. Finally, the man figures out that the woman plans to get rich while setting him up as the "fall guy."
That pretty much describes this film and many other entries in the genre. In fact, it's interesting having just watched "Palmetto" a week earlier. Both have a scene where a dead body is in the trunk of a car that must be opened after the driver gets a flat tire. As the main character begins to change it, along comes a cop who invariably wants to help and goes for the trunk. It was like deja vu all over again.
Written and directed by Darin Scott (the writer and producer of "Sprung" and "Tales From the Hood"), this movie, however, tries to put something of a comic spin on the whole genre. While it's occasionally funny, the problem is that Scott can't figure out how far to go with the comedy, and thus we're never sure what to think of the movie. There are some truly hilarious, but brief, moments, however, such as when Daryl -- who's been out of the social scene for years -- uses some antiquated dance moves at a nightclub. Some lines of dialogue also inspired audience-wide laughs, including a scene where Daryl -- who can't find a job -- comments that he doubts many people "...are looking for bald, ex-cons with big ears."
The problem is that since the film's not a full out spoof, but has twinges of that characteristic, we never take any of the other non-humorous moments that seriously. In fact one of the unintentionally funnier moments occurs when Daryl calls to speak to his son who doesn't know Daryl's his real father. While I'm guessing the moment is supposed to be heartfelt as Daryl sheds a tear telling his son to stay out of trouble, do his homework, and listen to his mother, etc... I -- and much of the audience -- didn't take it seriously for a moment.
Much of that problem lies with Bokeem Woodbine ("The Rock," "Dead Presidents") as the lead character. While he occasionally shows that he's an okay actor, at other moments he looks as if he's just up there goofing around and not even trying to act. I'm not sure how much of that is just his acting style, or if his character is written that way. Nevertheless, we're never quite sure how we're supposed to react to this guy. Cynda Williams ("One False Move," "Mo' Better Blues"), who inhabits the role of the temptress, isn't given much to do other than act mysteriously and/or seductively, but it's a throw away role that anyone could have played. The rest of the cast pretty much falls into that same category, although a few of the performers, such as Joseph Lindsey, ham it up quite nicely.
It doesn't help that Scott has peppered the feature with standard noir voice-overs, and we're treated to such beauts as Daryl saying upon leaving prison, "Nobody's waiting for me, but a dude named destiny. So I walked off to meet him." If you're a regular reader of our reviews, you already know that we hate the use of voice-overs as they're the cheap and easy way of imparting information to the audience. Beyond that, we also get a one-eyed character who wears a black eye patch and a bandana on his head that makes him look like a pirate (assumedly done intentionally, although I'm not sure why), and a mayor named Skrote (we're guessing short for "scrotum").
As a "thriller" in the noir line, the intentional and unintentional humor defuses most of those elements, and the plot, while wanting to appear complex, is rather sloppily done. Much of the diabolical "plan" hinges on two, non-related, but identical looking people (played, of course, by the same person), who become the catalyst for the main character's downfall, and are used as a later plot twist. As a spoof, one could accept that, but since the film never goes far enough in that direction, it simply comes off as unbelievable for the film's serious side. Similarly, things get wrapped up too easily and are far too predictable toward the end to make this film satisfactory for thrill-seeking audiences.
In perhaps the first variation on the film noir genre featuring a predominantly African-American cast, writer/director Darin Scott has delivered an occasionally fun, but ultimately misguided film. The duel-edged sword he so precariously tries to balance the film upon is ultimately his downfall as he never moves strongly in either direction of comedy or true noir. Even so, it has some decent moments and for a directorial debut, it certainly shows signs of future potential for Scott. This film, however, will be one of those that quickly leaves the theaters for a somewhat better life on home video. We give "Caught Up" a 4 out of 10.