You know your chosen career has hit a minor snag when you find yourself
critiquing the acting nuances of a kid named Lil' Bow Wow. That's
where I'm at right now. I am a few days removed from my preview screening
of Like Mike starring Mr. Wow (or, is
it Mr. Bow Wow ... no, no, then it would be hyphenated like Mr. Rodham-Wow).
Normally when reviewing a movie, I talk about the lead actors, the direction,
the screenwriting, whether the film will appeal to its target audience.
But I find myself struggling for words this time. Lil' Bow Wow? A child
rapper turned actor?! There are starving actors in New York and Los Angeles
who would break each other's necks for extra work in a student film, and
someone named Lil' Bow Wow has his name on movie marquees nationwide!
I digress. When it comes down to it, all readers of movie reviews want to know is: "Is the film any good? Is it worth my money?" Like Mike is definitely worth the money ... if you are a 12-year-old on an allowance, that is. The movie taps into one of the most popular dreams a kid can have: to be able to play against your sports idols and do well.
Lil' Bow Wow stars as Calvin Cambridge, a teenage orphan who finds a pair of lightning-struck sneakers one dark and stormy night with the faded initials "M.J." written in them. Thinking they are the shoes of basketball god Michael Jordan, little Calvin slips them on. One night at an NBA game, Cambridge is lucky enough to be in a seat that gets called as part of a promotion. The contest calls for him to go one-on-one with hotshot All-Star Tracey Reynolds (Morris Chestnut, always a welcome presence in a movie). Wearing his "Air Jordans," Calvin does things on the court that would make even M.J.'s tongue wag in astonishment. Eugene Levy, the savvy general manager of the fictional and quite mediocre Los Angeles Knights, signs Cambridge as the Knights' newest star attraction and assigns the somewhat jealous Reynolds to be the kid's roommate.
Like Mike is a slightly better and more endearing movie than the recent Juwanna Mann for two reasons. One, it uses REAL NBA TEAMS AND PLAYERS! Note to Hollywood: it is ALWAYS lame when a movie like Juwanna Mann or Any Given Sunday goes the cheap route and uses fictional teams playing in a fictional league to tell their stories. Like Mike benefits greatly from having Calvin play his (and today's kids') real idols: Jason Kidd and the Nets, Chris Webber and the Kings, and David Robinson and the Spurs. The film also features many other current NBA players, including Dirk Nowitzki and Allen Iverson.
Two, the film has a clear target audience ... children. Go into any shopping mall and you'll see a whole slew of 14-and-under punk asses wearing Shaq and Kobe and M.J. jerseys down to their knees. This movie is for them and them alone.
I have a community basketball court directly across from my house here in Maryland, and every afternoon the neighborhood homeboys are out there yelling things like: "Iverson for 3!" or "Yes, and it counts!" I used to be one of those guys. I would be out on that court or some other court for hours shooting jump shots, practicing free throws, and throwing in hooks. Did I have NBA dreams? Not really. I am and always have been truly, sadly, and terminally white. And, let's face it, my three-point shot was not THAT good. Football and baseball were more my dreams. I either wanted to return punts in the NFL (no, there really wasn't something right in my head back then) or play second base for the Orioles.
I remember an interview with Tommy Lee Jones a couple of years ago in which the journalist asked the Men in Black star if he felt old. His reply was top-notch: "Darling, just last year, I came to the realization that I'm never gonna play shortstop for the Cubs." I thought that was such a real answer. Guys in their 20s, 30s, and 40s ... heck, even their 50s and 60s ... will still watch sports on TV or in person and still project themselves into the games. In our heads, there is still that ... chance. Like Mike is about a kid who doesn't even have a chance at 14 who suddenly, through magic basically, gets one.
Yes, the movie would have worked better for me if, say, a Rick Moranis-type had found the shoes and immediately started schooling guys like Reynolds and Iverson. Yes, the special effects are hokey, the writing and the direction are obvious, and the acting is really not that good (I mean, not even a lightning-struck jacket from Brando's closet could turn Nowitzki or Kidd into a great thespian ... even playing themselves). But Like Mike is a child's fantasy, and a fairly harmless one. A slam-dunk? Uh, no. More like a successful lay-up.
Like Mike is rated PG for brief mild language.
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