# Black and White (1999)

### reviewed by
Akiva Gottlieb

Black and White rated R Screen Gems 98 minutes starring Scott Caan, Robert Downey Jr., Stacy Edwards, Allan Houston, Gaby Hoffmann, Kidada Jones, Jared Leto, Marla Maples, Joe Pantoliano, Bijou Phillips, Power, Raekwon, Claudia Schiffer, William Lee Scott, Brooke Shields, Ben Stiller, Eddie Kaye Thomas, James Toback, Mike Tyson, Elijah Wood, Kim Matulova written and directed by James Toback

A Review by Akiva Gottlieb James Toback is no stranger to controversy. In 1998, his brilliant "Two Girls And A Guy" was slapped with an NC-17 because of a sex scene that contained not a trace of nudity. His latest film, "Black and White", also received an NC-17 for a pre-credit sequence involving mE9nage a = trois in Central Park between a black man and two white teenage girls. Both films were eventually cut to receive a more marketable R rating, but each one is crafted with the skill of a filmmaker unafraid of taking risks.

It's too bad, then, that "Black and White" is as stagnant as it is. It is supposed to be an opus about race relations in New York City, but ultimately, the film is as inconsequential as any one of the underdeveloped caricatures that this ensemble cast attempts to animate. However, that doesn't stop it from being an entertaining 98-minute diversion.

Toback has fashioned "Black and White" unconventionally. He allowed his talented ensemble to improvise many scenes in the film. I'm sure Toback made this choice in order to add some realism to his character study, but most of the time, the improvisation leads to dialogue that is unnecessary, silly and artificial.

The plot of "Black and White" involves a dread-locked Brooke Shields, playing a documentary filmmaker out to study the recent phenomenon of upper class white kids who pretend to live the hip-hop lifestyle. Along with her closeted gay husband (Robert Downey Jr., who starred in Toback's "Two Girls And A Guy"), she follows around a group of Manhattan teenagers (Bijou Phillips, Elijah Wood, Gaby Hoffmann, Eddie Kaye Thomas) on their daily journey to "the 'hood", where they meet up with members of the fictional rap group Cream Team (Power, Raekwon, Method Man),

Meanwhile, Dean (Allan Houston), a local basketball player, receives $50,000 from a mysterious man (Ben Stiller) in order to lose a game. His girlfriend (Claudia Schiffer) tells him to "be true to yourself", and taking her advice gets him into trouble with the law.

There is an already infamous scene in "Black and White" which finds Robert Downey Jr. hitting on a hilarious Mike Tyson (playing himself). The fun of the encounter is derived from Toback's clever improvisation guidelines. He told Downey to make a move on Tyson, and told Tyson that Downey would merely come up and make conversation. After Downey gets a little too close, Tyson slaps him across the face. "But what if he kills me?" Downey asked Toback. Toback replied, "Look at it this way; firstly, I'll get it on camera and we'll have a great scene and secondly, if he does kill you, what more dramatic way is there to go?" This is a director with a unique vision.

For a while, "Black and White" gets by on the charm of fish-out-of-water encounters like the aforementioned Downey-Tyson sequence. But the charm easily wears thin since many of the actors give irritating performances. NBA star Allan Houston, supermodel Claudia Schiffer, and rapper Power all make unsuccessful transitions into acting. Also, Toback's film works better when it's not worrying about plot. Towards the end, as "Black and White" works toward its weak denouement, it becomes a conventional murder story; one that isn't particularly interesting.

Toback is obviously aiming for a dissection of role-playing in society, but it rarely works as such. Instead, it's a day-in-the-life journey across the respective 'cribs' of those living "the lifestyle", in one way or another. To call it a dissection would give Toback too much credit, because he never gets under the skin of his characters in a way that Robert Altman might have.

The "wigga" phenomenon was explored in last year's critically reviled "Whiteboys", and more explorations of the matter seem pointless. "Black and White" tells its viewer "to thine own self be true," but it glorifies a culture that would contradict the statement.

    C+
    Akiva Gottlieb
    Critical66@yahoo.com
    http://pictureshow.8m.com

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