Little Man (Widescreen)
by Keenen Ivory Wayans
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DVD details
Actor: John Witherspoon, Kerry Washington, Marlon Wayans, Shawn Wayans, Tracy MorganDirector: Keenen Ivory Wayans
Brand: WAYANS,MARLON
Writer: Shawn Wayans
Producer: Marlon Wayans
Writer: Marlon Wayans
Producer: Keenen Ivory Wayans
Writer: Keenen Ivory Wayans
Producer: Lee R. Mayes
Producer: Rick Alvarez
DVD: Region Code 99
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 5.1; English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); Portuguese (Subtitled); Chinese (Subtitled); Thai (Subtitled); Korean (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1; French (Dubbed), Dolby Digital 5.1
Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: Anamorphic Widescreen, 1.85:1
Running Time: 98 minutes
Published: 2006-11-01
DVD Release Date: 2006-11-07
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
DVD Reviews of Little Man (Widescreen)
DVD Review: "Little Man" Was a Big Mistake
Summary: 1 Stars
As I sat through "Little Man," I was reminded of a cartoon drawn by Charles Addams. It showed three mobster-type men standing in front of the safety deposit box of a bank. Two of them were normal sized while the one in the middle was a dwarf who couldn't have been more than two and a half feet tall. The caption underneath the cartoon has this short criminal saying, "All right, fellas. You got it straight what you're supposed to do?" I think the effectiveness of this joke depends on its simplicity; a single illustration on a piece of paper is all we're given, and the rest of the scenario is left up to our imaginations. If the joke had been extended into a full comic strip and had told a complete story, it would have been a terrible read. That's because we know how unrealistic it is to rob a bank by stuffing a dwarf through a safety deposit box.
Herein lies the failure of "Little Man": it's an absolutely ridiculous movie about a pint-sized criminal and his attempt to infiltrate someone else's home by dressing up as a baby. From start to finish, it's filled to the brim with implausible circumstances, idiotic characters, and low-grade humor, none of which heighten the comedic intentions so much as they completely destroy them. I don't think the fact that it was directed by Keenan Ivory Wayans makes that much of a difference; he successfully tackled the first two "Scary Movie" films with an over the top sense of humor, turning them into full-blown parodies. From these examples, I know he's capable of entertaining an audience. That's one of the reasons why this new film was difficult to sit through: I hoped for something amusing but got something that completely misses the mark.
It's also an offensive movie, exploiting those with Dwarfism and turning the condition into a way to get a cheap laugh. It's made even worse by the fact that the main character--vertically challenged criminal mastermind Calvin Simms--is played by Marlon Wayans, someone who in real life is of average height. They had to use special effects for this character, superimposing Wayans' head with that of a small actor's body. That just doesn't seem credible to me. For that matter, neither does the plot, an idea so garbled it's a wonder the studio gave this project the green light. When Calvin is released from prison, he immediately plots another daring heist with his dimwitted rapper-wannabe of a sidekick, Percy (Tracy Morgan). They have to steal a very large diamond and give it to Walken (Chazz Palminteri), an Italian kingpin stereotype whose reasons for wanting the diamond in the first place are unknown. (It must have been more than money. He didn't just want the diamond; he was desperate for it)
Lucky for them, it's on display at an upscale jewelery store, and they waste no time in attempting to get their hands on it. In order to sneak in undetected, Calvin is stuffed into an oversized sports bag and carried over Percy's shoulder. Percy then enters, sets the bag down, and distracts one of the salesclerks by claiming he's the producer of a hip-hop record label and he's looking to give his "girls" some bling. (Now do you see what I mean about this being offensive?) Calvin goes about his task and successfully steals the diamond, crawling beneath the display stand and drilling a hole to the surface. It's interesting that no one noticed this as it was happening, considering the store was full of people. Only in a substandard comedy would the crooks be noticed just as they're leaving, and only then is the alarm is sounded.
Percy and Calvin are nearly caught by the police while making their getaway. In order to protect themselves and the diamond, they run into a local drugstore and drop it into a woman's purse. While this gets them out of hot water with the police, it still creates an even bigger problem: the diamond is now in someone else's possession and they have to somehow recover it and deliver it to Walken before it's too late. They then come up with a plan, one that involves Calvin posing as an abandoned baby. Percy leaves Calvin on the doorstep of the woman's home with a barely legible note attached to his bib. He then rings the doorbell and walks away. It could have been such a classic moment (if a little cliche) were it not for a wandering dog that stops and pees on Calvin's face.
The house belongs to Darryl (Shawn Wayans) and Vanessa (Kerry Washington), a young couple who, as it happens, have been trying to have a baby. Even though they're not bad people, I didn't like them one bit. For one thing, Darryl didn't seem completely fleshed out; all we know for sure is that he can't afford a diamond for his wife's ring (which she wears anyway) and that he's hell bent on starting a family. Vanessa is ambitious but incredibly naive, pretty much to the point of foolishness (not helped by the fact that she never once looked inside her purse). And the fact that they welcome Calvin with open arms is beyond me; not only does he not look like a baby, he doesn't sound or behave like one, either. And yet they fall for it, as does everyone else in this movie. He even manages to fool a doctor, who notices right off the bat that he has a tattoo, a scar on the left side of his stomach, and all thirty-two teeth in his mouth (with bridge work, I might add). I can't help but question the state of anyone who fails to notice that a dwarf looks nothing like a real baby.
The only character who isn't fooled is Vanessa's father (John Witherspoon), a crotchety old man living with his daughter and son-in-law (the latter of which he despises). He continuously makes note of how ugly a baby Calvin is (at one point he calls him Chucky), and always wants to take the attention away from him. Of course, Calvin is on to him and knows just how to fix the problem. Basically, he makes the old man look senile by acting one way in front of his "parents" and another way in front of him. It works well enough to get him sent away to a nursing home, something his daughter was initially unwilling to do (she was too doting to notice how unlikable a man he really is). How interesting that the writers used a plot device harkening back to the Warner Bros. cartoon "One Froggy Evening." And how dumb.
Truth be told, "dumb" is a pretty good way to describe the entire film. It was one of the most unfunny, unintelligent films I've ever seen, made worse by pathetic attempts at drama and prejudicial overtones. Within the first thirty minutes, I found that I no longer cared whether or not the diamond would eventually be recovered and everything would turn out okay. That didn't seem to be what the filmmakers wanted to focus on, despite the fact that it plays a very important role in the story. All they wanted to show was juvenile humor and meaningless, offensive caricatures. This doesn't just apply to the main characters; in a scene when the neighborhood dads play football with their sons, a testosterone-driven tough guy (who believes boys should be raised only around sports) picks up his son by his helmet and drags him. That was painful to watch, as was the rest of the film.
Charles Addams had the right idea when he drew that cartoon. It was short and to the point, and by not making it into an actual story, it didn't expose the ridiculousness of the situation. This is more than I can say for "Little Man." My only recommendation is that you avoid this movie. It's not worth the time or the effort, and it certainly isn't worth the price of admission.
Description of Little Man (Widescreen)
A man desperate to be a father adopts an abandonded baby without realizing the child is a pint-sized jewel thief.Genre: Feature Film-Comedy
Rating: PG13
Release Date: 3-APR-2007
Media Type: DVD
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