Review: You People
Opposites Attract, Families Don't
THE PLOT
A new couple and their families reckon with modern love amid culture clashes, societal expectations, and generational differences.
QUICK REVIEW
These days any time we get a new film from Eddie Murphy I’m instantly intrigued. The last few years he’s been turning in some good performances in what I’ve generally considered to be pretty enjoyable films. Now add big names like Jonah Hill, Nia Long, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and David Duchovny? Well this should be a fun watch on paper. Enter the newest Netflix original, You People.
But even with such major names attached, from the very first scene I was taken aback on how cheap the production looked, and how obvious it was this was meant for a straight to streamer. This is the kind of quality I would expect in those weekly straight to Netflix romance films I was catching up with the last few years.
Oh well, well maybe the movie utilizes its cast well? That was a mixed result for me. Hill, Murphy, Louis-Dreyfus, and Lauren London (who plays the bride to be) were all a main focus while everyone else was kind of just standing around. I saw more for Nia Long in Missing where she spends most of the film, well, missing, then I did in this movie!
Well perhaps its at least funny? I will admit it got a sizable couple of chuckles from me. But for the most part the humor felt restrained at times perhaps because Murphy is playing such a serious role in here that it almost feels like he’s just sleepwalking through the movie. And some of the jokes just feel like they needed a cleanup in the script.
As “meh” as this movie felt in its execution though it still had its moments and I still cared to see how this would end unlike the other film from the weekend in Shotgun Wedding. It has big names attached, but ultimately this feels like any other weekly romance Netflix movie of the week. And while it tries to be Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner, it instead ends up a dollar value Meet The Parents. If you need to pass the time this would be a fine enough filler for your day, but otherwise I was left underwhelmed by You People.
INTIAL GRADING
