A Low Down Dirty Shame (1994)

Director:

Keenen Ivory Wayans

Writer (WGA):

Keenen Ivory Wayans (written by)

Release Date:

23 November 1994 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Comedy | Crime

Tagline:

He's armed and dangerously funny.

Plot:

A black detective becomes embroiled in a web of danger while searching for a fortune in missing drug money.During the course of his investigation...

Plot Keywords:

Drugs | White Supremacy | Explosion | Drug Lord | Homosexual

US TV Schedule:

Tue. Nov. 17

1:00 PM

BET

Cast

Keenen Ivory Wayans	...	Shame
Charles S. Dutton	...	Rothmiller
Jada Pinkett Smith	...	Peaches (as Jada Pinkett)
Salli Richardson-Whitfield	...	Angela (as Salli Richardson)
Andrew Divoff	...	Mendoza
Corwin Hawkins	...	Wayman
Gary Cervantes	...	Luis
Gregory Sierra	...	Captain Nunez
Kim Wayans	...	Diane
Andrew Shaifer	...	Bernard
Chris Spencer	...	Benny (as Christopher Spencer)
Devin DeVasquez	...	Mendoza's Girl (as Devin Devasquez)
John Capodice	...	Mob Boss
Craig Ryan Ng	...	Chun Yung Fat
Don Diamont	...	Chad

Also Known As:

Mister Cool

Runtime:

UK:100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Netherlands:12 | South Korea:15 | Philippines:R-18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Caravan Pictures

Trivia:

Shame tells the bodyguard/thug (played by Sven-Ole Thorsen) to "say hello to Arnold for me" before hitting him with the gun. Thorsen has appeared on screen in nine different Arnold Schwarzenegger movies, did stunts and training for actors and stuntmen in many others, and was actually introduced to the movie business by Arnold, who knew him from when they used to do bodybuilding competitions together.

Goofs:

Continuity: When he calls Agent Rothmiller to let him know that he has located Angela, Shame doesn't identify himself to the telephonist. But when Rothmiller gets on the telephone, he knows that it is Shame.

Quotes:

Bernard: [after Shame lies about him and Wayman] He's lying! Don't believe him, Bernard. Don't believe him.
Shame: Oh, you didn't say that last night when we was in bed together, girl!
Bernard: You *slept* with him? You *slut*!
[slaps Wayman senseless]
Wayman: Bernard?
Shame: Save your tears, honey, you never had a chance! Coffee's good with cream but better when it's black!
Bernard: Don't you ever, *ever* call me again. And you "Mr. Coffee", if you like some steamed milk with your double espresso, I'm your man!
Wayman: Bernard, I'm sorry! I promise I'll call you.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Notorious B.I.G.: Ready to Die - The Remaster (2004) (V)

Soundtrack:

OLD ARRIVAL

Derivative, clichéd stuff that distracts but nothing more

Shame is a former cop who, in an attempt to be different, is now a private detective with, would you believe it, loads of debts, a bedraggled appearance and a bagload of quips and smartassed remarks. When old friend Rothmiller offers him a job to track down a criminal who Shame believes he had killed. He takes the case for personal as much as financial reasons and soon finds himself in a whole world of trouble. Meanwhile his secretary Peaches, tries to help him but the sexual tension between them also proves to be a distraction.

I must admit that I expected very little from this film and, truth be told, it delivered exactly what I expected from it – very little. From the title I knew it was aiming to be a comedy that would homage the idea of Shaft and other such movies – I didn't think that it would aim for spoof because it appeared to be more affectionate than that. This in itself is not a terrible thing but unfortunately it doesn't do anything very well and only succeeds in being a very basic piece of entertainment. The dramatic plot is important to it since it does try to be a thriller of sorts; sadly it doesn't work as it has too little substance and too much in the way of lazy writing and sweeping dramatic clichés.

These clichés are also to be found in the characters. Shame is totally by-the-numbers; Peaches is a typically sassy black woman cliché; there is a tough police sergeant etc etc. Wayans is OK and fits the title role but, aside from some nice lines he really doesn't make the role his own. Pinkett is sexy and all but really she is yet another person reinforcing the "neck-jerking, finger-clicking" cliché of black women that is forced fed to us in too many media outlets. Dutton has little to do and Divoff is a pretty obvious bad guy. The cast all try but to be honest the material just isn't there dramatically or for the comedy and there is little the cast can do to cover for that – however it is hard to defend a performance from Hawkins that verges on being offensive.

Overall this is very basic distraction that may just about do you if you are in an undemanding mood for a vaguely amusing but derivative detective movie. The script, plot and characters are overwhelmed by cliché and nothing actually works that well at all. Basic, Friday night stuff but certainly not worth staying in for.