“It’s a place where the black man means something. It’s our own country club.”
Welcome to the Barbershop, the home-away-from-home of an inner city neighborhood. Set in the South Side of Chicago, we are invited into the world of the “boys club” where worldly discussions intermingle with friendly banter, ranging from Rosa Parks, “who didn’t do nothing but sit her black ass down,” to the differences between a “woman with a big ass” and a “big ass woman.”
There is nothing to do but sit back and laugh out loud as this 102-minute story, directed by Tim Story, unfolded before our eyes. Calvin Palmer, Jr., played by a frustrated Ice Cube, owns Calvin’s Barbershop.
Wanting to by his pregnant wife “Stedman’s house,” Calvin wants to sell the barbershop to loan shark Lester Wallace, played by Keith David. Clearly, Calvin does not appreciate the importance of the barbershop in the African-American Community.
Throughout the movie, the necessity of the barbershop unfolds before our eyes; you become the customer and get involved in the lives of these characters.
We have Terri, the only female hairdresser, as the victim in an unfaithful relationship, well acted by Eve. Then there is the college-educated, arrogant preppy barber, Jimmy, played by Save the Last Dance’s Sean Patrick Thomas. We have the reformed ex-con Ricky portrayed by newcomer Michael Ealy and Tinka, the ”overweight West African barber with a fondness for poetry” played by Leonard Earl Howze.
The movie would have not been complete without the token white guy, thug wannabe complete with iced out chains, pimped out Navigator, and a “fatty girl,” Isaac (Troy Garity). The ensemble comes together to form a believable bond of brotherhood.
Some of the best moments in the movie, as well as perhaps the most touching, are provided by the wise, elderly, and comedic originally employed barber Eddie, played by Cedric the Entertainer. Eddie is the nostalgic one, and acts as a catalyst for much of the barbershop banter.
Through him, we understand why the barbershop is at the forefront of optimum importance in the inner cities throughout America.
We get the sense that it is more than just a haircut you are getting. You get a history lesson, advice, and gossip all for a $20 fee.
While this is going on, we have a subplot of a stolen ATM machine that provides some of the more hilarious moments in the film as it is hauled all over the South Side of Chicago.
However, it detracts some of the film’s credibility as a realistic portrayal of the typical daily events of a barbershop. Clearly, the Dumb and Dumber factor was employed here, but hey, who didn’t see Dumb and Dumber a second time? The laughter never stops.
But if you want a rainy day, $9 escape, see the movie. With a buy-worthy soundtrack and a laugh out loud factor, The Barbershop is nothing short of a feel-good comedy that even the suburban salon-types will find entertaining.
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