Orisha Shango

Convicted felon Jake Shuttlesworth (Denzel Washington) receives a one week release from prison to convince his son (Ray Allen)--America's top prep basketball player--to attend the governor's college alma mater. Promising premise and able cast are sold short by a plot that incessantly indulges in gratuitous (and completely unrelated) sex and nudity. Even with the single-note moral points on fatherhood and temptation pummelled home in an obvious, unimaginative fashion, the film practically sinks to exploitation level. Spike Lee's colorful, stylish cinematography and Washington's usual, solid performance make this one bearable.

When a corrupt black state assemblyman from New York City threatens to destroy the projects in his district by selling out to condominium development interests, a young hiphop artist (Doug E. Fresh) galvanises the community in an election-year charge to unseat him. Although this film proves to be an engaging story about the power of youthful political activism, it also succeeds in not taking itself too seriously--blending camp with social consciousness. Highlights: socially astute original hiphop songs coupled with spirited discussions and dramatisations about the issues facing black inner-city communities. Major flaws: unnecessarily foul language and a dissatisfying anticlimactic ending. 6/10

Following an encounter with a mysterious meteorite, a Washington D.C. school teacher (Robert Townsend) discovers that he has developed super powers and subsequently uses them to become a caped crusader against the forces of evil in his own inner-city community. Although the ambitious, imaginative script is loaded with misfired comedic gags, it does produce several genuinely amusing sequences--in particular, the climactic showdown between Meteor Man and his golden-haired drug lord nemesis. Biggest plus: the extremely talented (but frustratingly underused) supporting cast that reads like a Who's Who list of black television and movie greats. It includes: Bill Cosby ("The Cosby Show" and "Ghost Dad"), James Earl Jones ("The Great White Hope" and "Roots: The Next Generation"), Marla Gibbs ("The Jeffersons" and "227"), and Robert Guillaume ("Benson" and "Lean On Me").

Also, it's just plain refreshing to see a 1990's larger-than-life black superhero/role model in a family-oriented film.