Chris Rock has had a bit of a shaky career when it comes to
making film directing, with previous attempts Head of State and I Think I
Love My Wife coming off as passable at best. But with Top
Five, Chris Rock seems to have hit on something, probably precisely because
it feels so genuine. Whereas his
previous films tried to mold Rock’s persona into a scripted performance, this
film embraces the type of style that Rock is most suited for, and that’s
stand-up comedy. Sure, the film is a bit
meandering and tangential at times, but think about how stand-up is delivered,
and that’s usually how it goes.
Eventually, Rock works his way back to the narrative through-line of the
film, but the vignettes that break up the structure actually seem to enhance
what would otherwise be a pretty standard rom-com narrative.
Rock plays a partially autobiographical character named
Andre Allen, and the film follows him as he tries to juggle releasing a serious
dramatic film, being involved in a reality TV wedding, and convincing the world
to take him seriously and forget about his wildly successful comedy franchise
where we played a wisecracking talking bear.
Sitting opposite to Andre’s rants is Chelsea (Rosario Dawson), a
journalist looking to shed some light on Andre despite all the tabloid buzz
surrounding him. What ends up
transpiring is pretty transparently predictable, as the two begin to realize a
chemistry that ultimately leads to Andre re-embracing his comedic roots. And you know what, that works just fine, because
the characters are likeable, and the conflicts they work through are relatable
and cathartic when they reach resolution.
What makes this film stand apart is how the narrative will
sometimes take a break so that Andre can tell an anecdote that will be visually
interpreted through flashback and celebrity cameos. This is what is either going to make you love
or hate this film. These asides are less
akin to something you’d see in Family Guy
and more like a narrative one would hear in a stand-up performance being acted
out. Usually, these side stories are
pretty funny, and it’s nice to see Chris Rock adhering to his storytelling
strengths. However, much like a stand up
narrative, the return back to the main plotline can be jarring, as the story is
suddenly over and we remember that there’s actually greater narrative.
However, I think Rock makes it work. It definitely won’t be the type of narrative
structure that many people find engaging, particularly those with attention
spans short enough that the vignettes will distract from the plot rather than
enhance the characters, but if you want to see the cinematic equivalent of a
stand-up comedy show, Chris Rock seems to have delivered exactly that.
In fact, the film reminds me of the show Louie in that respect, though Chris Rock
and Louis C.K. aren’t all that similar in their comedy. Any thoughts on that? Leave them in the comments below.
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