Keanu

We all have those movies that we grew up on and loved as children; the ones that sparked our imaginations and helped mold us into the people that we are today. Whenever we needed a laugh, needed our spirits lifted, or simply wanted to get away, those films were always there for us. For me I would look for inspiration through the wonderful stories of Krull, The Neverending Story, The Karate Kid, and of course Silence of the Lambs; I wasn’t much of Disney kid growing up. And no matter what anyone said to me, nothing could keep me from loving these films.

Well the problem with this is that we have such fond memories of these movies that we tend to overlook the glaring flaws in them. So we forget the fact that the only way Krull could defeat the evil beast was with the power of love or that Willow was really just a creepy looking midget on film. I’m sure the kids of today will one day look back and realize that movies like Harry Potter and The Hunger Games were never really any good to begin with mainly due to the fact that with all of the MDMA that’s out there these days, there really is an easy solution to those pesky friendship testing love triangles that pop up in these corny films; and I’m not talking about a game of Quittage either.

The point of all of this is that I believe the movie Keanu may eventually fall into this category. Don’t get me wrong, I was laughing like an idiot in the theater last night but once the hype machine behind Key and Peele dies down a bit, I’m not so sure that this movie will have the lasting power of say, a Chappelle Show skit. I know, I know but they had to know that they would forever be linked to him once they signed up to be on Comedy Central.

Keanu is as dumb as its premise sounds; it’s about the brokenhearted Peele finding a new reason to live when the cutest kitten the world has ever seen wanders his way up to his doorstep. This lovely little creature appears to have turned his life around until one night, when he returns home from seeing a movie with Key, he realizes that Keanu has been stolen by a rival gang of drug dealers who mistook his apartment for his weed dealer’s. So the two of them embark on a dangerous trip through the dark underworld of drugs and guns to retrieve this little life saver of Peele’s.

Along the way however they must prove to its new owner Method Man and his crew that they are the mysterious duo the Allentown brothers, two deadly assassins whose killing methods have become legendary in the hood. But at the same time, they must be careful not to do anything that will jeopardize their everyday lives, which includes the struggling marriage of Key’s.

From there you are taken on a wild ride that includes the od’ing and fatal shooting of a real life celebrity, gang banging initiations, the entire George Michael anthology, and of course Keanu running his way through epic gunfights! And even though it doesn’t appear that way in the previews, they really do find subtle ways to poke fun at some of the stereotypes that are associated with black culture. Now I have to admit that that last part truly surprised me simply for the fact that nothing about their show is remotely subtle.

And if you’ve seen their show, you know going in that only about 25% of what they put out will actually be funny, but that that 25% will be unbelievably funny! Well it appears that they saved their best for this film as that percentage went way up in what will surely be a game changer for them. I rate this film as FRESH and suggest you check it out.