Benn Farrell Harlem Nights (1989)
reviewed by Benn "Where's the Humanity?" Farrell

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I'm not certain, but this may have been Eddie Murphy's last R-Rated movie, before he found Christ and has done nothing but family safe pictures since.

"Harlem Nights" is about an illegal nightclub owner named Sugar, played by Richard Pryor (Stir Crazy), and his adopted son Quick, played by Murphy (Daddy Day Care). During the 1920's, mob boss Bugsy Calhoun had a grip on New York City, and when he starts putting the squeeze on Sugar to cut him in on his thriving business, things start messing up for the two.

Quick ends up killing Calhoun's girlfriend and blamed for the murder of Tommy Small, one of Calhoun's operators. Sugar wants to leave town, but Quick wants to stay and fight this mafia. Eventually, they devise a plan to rob Calhoun for everything he's got a clever heist before skipping out of town.

The picture's character's are very well put together. Murphy, who wrote and directed the movie, obviously gave himself a few uneeded scenes for more screen time. The comedy was all insult comedy, but for some reason it didn't get on my nerves as much.

What makes the picture extra special is it stars three generations of ground breaking African American stand up comedians, each of whom were fans of each other. Red Foxx (TV's Sanford and Son) plays Benny the blind craps shooter. Foxx was a huge inspiration for Pryor when he was breaking out onto the comedy stage. Pryor in turn was Murphy's largest influence as a young comedian. It is exciting to see them all in the same picture.

The late Foxx's wife Della Reese (Beautyshop) also stars in the picture as the queen ho of Sugar's casino. She is hilarious, especially in the scene where she kicks Murphys a** in the alley behind Sugar's place for calling her a thief.

The biggest drawback for most people with this movie is the over-the-top foul language. Litterally, almost every third word is fuck or nigger. I think the story is fun and the characters are amusing, so the language didn't bother me, but I cannot defend it.

This picture has the crudest language of any comedy ever.

So if language bothers you, stay away from this movie. If it doesn't, than this picture should be an absolute riot for you like it is for me.

Benn - Where's the Humanity?