Remake of ‘White Men Can’t Jump’ impressive

Film Review

Tinashe Kusema

IN cinema, “classic” is one of those words thrown around too much for my liking.

Critics like to use it but can hardly define or defend it.

Consider the recent Hulu release “White Men Can’t Jump”. The film was instantly bashed by both fans and critics, even before its release. The main reason for all the hate was that it was ruining a 90s “classic”.

Let me prefix this week’s review of the said film by saying that I do belong to that upper or lower echelon that believes Hollywood is currently going through a brain freeze and going for the low-hanging fruits with these remakes, reboots and delayed sequels.

The live-action remake of “The Lion King” was a mitigated disaster and the same goes for films like “Hocus Pocus” and “The Little Mermaid”. Having grown up in the 90s, and a huge fan of some of these movies, my gripe with them all has nothing to do with their status as movie classics or not.

They are just films fans have or had zero interest in, either watching them again or sitting through a sequel or reboot. But there are exceptions to that rule as, in some contexts, the remakes in question add value to the old film or are simply better products.

“White Men Can’t Jump” belongs to that category.

Is the modern version of the 1992 film perfect? Well, the answer to that is a big No.

However, it certainly is a better product when it comes to performances, writing and character development.

“White Men Can’t Jump” follows two former basketball stars Kamal (Sinqua Walls) and Jeremy (Rapper Jack Harlow), who navigate the remains of their failed careers.

While a moment of anger ruined the National Basketball Association prospects Kamal had during high school, a career-ending injury killed Jeremy’s dreams.

Now, the two polar opposites eke out a living through hustling at pick-up games. Jeremy tries to hitch a ride to the spotlight by mentoring young promising players.

When their lives intersect, an unlikely friendship blossoms as the two bond over their love for basketball and hustling unsuspecting players off their money. A big three-on-three tournament offers them an opportunity to get out of debt and provide for their respective families, on condition they do not kill each other first.

While a bit romanticised, the plot alone is way better than the original, which concentrates more on the basketball hustling element without going into depth on the characters.

While the duo might lack the acting chops of Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson, the original pairing for the 1992 movie, they make up for it with plenty of good humour, great chemistry and a more rounded story.

One of the key elements that separates this particular film from its original is the supporting cast, particularly the comedy duo of Vince Staples (Speedy) and Myles Bullock (Renzo).

The two are in the movie for laughs basically, but steal the show with the comedic timing and great performances as Kamal’s two childhood friends.

The film also happens to be the late great Lance Riddick’s last project, before his untimely death in March, and scores the sentimentality points from just that.

For those not familiar with the actor, he was the guy who played Charron in the “John Wick” movies. You know the concierge of the Continental Hotel in New York City and the right-hand man of Winston Scott (Ian McShane).

He also starred in movies like “Godzilla vs Kong”, “White House Down” and “The Siege”, and appeared in shows like “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit”, “The Wire”, “Oz” and “Lost”.