The follow up to Friday was a bit funnier than I expected, but not without its faults. The plot is nonexistent and the jokes are often forced, but you will laugh your ass off, even if it is only the random giggle.
Next Friday follows up where Friday left off, but it is definitely a lot different. Craig (Ice Cube) gets shipped to the suburbs to his now rich relative’s house, leaving the mean streets behind at his father’s urging. Everyone remembers the first Friday for three things: pot smoking, Debo the bully, and Ice Cube’s crazy sidekick, Smokey. There is a bit of pot smoking going on, but two years later Smokey is in rehab and Debo barely makes his presence felt.
This Friday finds Cube goofing around in the suburbs with his cousin, Day-Day (Mike Epps). Day-Day has his own problem with a crazy ex-girlfriend, D’Wana (Tamala Jones), who claims she is carrying his baby. Then there’s her younger, crazy sister and new bully, Baby D (rapper Lady Of Rage), who is after Day-Day with a vengeance.
But all is not well in the suburban village of Rancho Cucamonga. Across the cul-de-sac live three crazy Latino drug dealers and their sister Karla (Lisa Rodriguez) who Craig falls for. Even in the suburbs, Craig finds trouble, but most of the truly funny parts are with Craig’s dad (John Witherspoon) who is a laugh riot.
The movie is often funny, but funny at the expense of the Latin gang members who are as smart as a rock and about as funny as one. They bring little to the table, and it’s as much their fault as that of the writer, Ice Cube. It’s not the funniest comedy you’ll see this year, but you will laugh, even if it’s at toilet humor or some silly pot antics. Next Friday isn’t for everyone, but at least everyone will get the joke.
+ charlie craine
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.