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Caught Up |
List Price: $14.98
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| Product Info |
Reviews |
Features:
- Color
- Closed-captioned
- Widescreen
Description:
It's no wonder Caught Up only garnered haphazard theatrical release in 1998. Director Darin Scott, who is credited with screenplay nods for Tales from the Hood and Sprung, tosses everything--including the kitchen sink--into this noir rip-off that borrows liberally from Chinatown and Bound but lacks the intelligent gravity and grace of the former and the stylish, tongue-in-cheek fun of the latter. Starring Bokeem Woodbine as Darryl, an ex-con who wants to go straight but who keeps finding himself in unlucky circumstances, Caught Up has laughable dialogue and terrible bug-eyed over-emoting that tries to pass for acting and wastes the laconic beauty of One False Move costar Cynda Williams, who plays a femme fatale named Vanessa Dietrich (honest!). Vanessa wraps Darryl around her little finger and embroils him in a voodoo-esque drug plot that will have the viewer rolling on the floor in disbelief. Had Caught Up played its convoluted plot for laughs, it may have at least been a camp parody on the genre, but as it is, it doesn't avoid a single cinematic cliché. The DVD comes with a slew of music videos, the radio and TV spot, as well as a director's commentary track. But don't be fooled by all the goodies--they're simply a smokescreen to nudge the audience into thinking the film is important and worthy. Caught Up is a goofy mess of contradictions and implausibility. --Paula Nechak
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