"BARBERSHOP"
(2002) (Ice Cube, Anthony Anderson) (PG-13)

Alcohol/ Drugs	Blood/Gore	Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude	Frightening/ Tense Scenes	Guns/ Weapons
*Mild	Minor	Heavy	None	Mild
Imitative Behavior	Jump Scenes	Music (Scary/Tense)	Music (Inappropriate)	Profanity
Mild	None	Minor	*None	Heavy
Sex/ Nudity	Smoking	Tense Family Scenes	Topics To Talk About	Violence
Moderate	Minor	Minor	Mild	Moderate

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QUICK TAKE:

Comedy: After discovering that his inherited barbershop is a pivotal element in the community, a man rethinks his decision to sell it.

PLOT:

Calvin Palmer (ICE CUBE) is a Chicagoan and frustrated entrepreneur who isn't happy with the longstanding barbershop he inherited from his father. After two years of trying to make the place financially stable, he's decided to sell it to local loan shark Lester Wallace (KEITH DAVID), but has kept that secret from his pregnant wife, Jennifer (JAZSMIN LEWIS), who's grown tired of his various get rich business schemes.

He also hasn't told his various employees. There's Eddie (CEDRIC THE ENTERTAINER), the older and highly opinionated veteran barber, and Terri Jones (EVE), the lone female in the shop who's upset that her boyfriend, Kevin (JASON GEORGE), cheated on her. She's the object of attraction for Dinka (LEONARD EARL HOWZE), a soft-spoken African immigrant.

Jimmy James (SEAN PATRICK THOMAS) is an elitist college student who looks down on Isaac Rosenberg (TROY GARITY), the lone white barber who looks and acts as if he's trying to be black, as well as Ricky Nash (MICHAEL EALY), a two-time felon who's trying to stay straight.

He's under the eye of Detective Williams (TOM WRIGHT) who's investigating the theft of an ATM machine from an adjacent convenience store. Little does he know that it was really stolen by bumbling thieves JD (ANTHONY ANDERSON) and Billy (LAHMARD TATE) who keep moving the machine across the city while trying to crack it open.

When Calvin realizes that it's a focal point of the community and learns that Lester plans on converting the shop into a gentleman's club, he races against time to figure out how to buy it back before it's too late.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?

Those who are fans of anyone in the cast might be interested in seeing it.

WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG-13

For language, sexual content and brief drug references.

CAST AS ROLE MODELS:

ICE CUBE plays the owner of the barbershop he inherited from his father. Looking for a quick buck, he sells the financially unstable place but then has a change of heart when he realizes what a focal point it is for the community. He uses some profanity.

ANTHONY ANDERSON plays a petty thief who steals an ATM machine and then repeatedly tries to open it. He uses some profanity.

CEDRIC THE ENTERTAINER plays an older and highly opinionated barber at the shop who freely speaks his mind and briefly uses strong profanity.

SEAN PATRICK THOMAS plays a college student with a superiority complex toward the other barbers.

EVE plays the lone female barber in the shop who puts up with all of the men as well as having caught her boyfriend with another woman.

TROY GARITY plays the white barber who must put up with the others thinking he's just trying to look, act and sound black when that's just the way he is.

MICHAEL EALY plays an ex-con who can't afford another strike against him, but nevertheless carries a gun into the shop with him.

LEONARD EARL HOWZE plays a soft spoken African immigrant who's sweet on Terri.

KEITH DAVID plays an unscrupulous loan shark who buys Calvin's shop and then won't sell it back to him without a huge profit for himself.

JAZSMIN LEWIS plays Calvin's pregnant wife who isn't pleased with his business decisions.

LAHMARD TATE plays Eddie's equally inept partner in crime who helps him steal the ATM machine.

TOM WRIGHT plays a cop investigating the stolen ATM machine who thinks that Ricky is guilty.

JASON GEORGE plays Terri's boyfriend who fools around on her and then tries to sweet talk his way back into her graces.

CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO

HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE

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Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit?
Then read OUR TAKE of this film.

(Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below).

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OUR WORD TO PARENTS:

The following is a brief summary of the content found in this comedy that's been rated PG-13. Profanity consists of at least 1 "f" word (a few others also sounded like that), while other expletives and colorful phrases are present. Some sexually related dialogue occurs, while the camera occasionally focuses on women's clothed rear ends, one man grabs his girlfriend's while kissing her, and some photos/posters of scantily clad are briefly seen from a distance.

Various characters have varying degrees of bad attitudes, while violence consists of people punching or hitting others, some property damage, some accidental injuries and some threatening with a gun. Some brief smoking occurs as do some drug references, while a character may smoke a joint (although it's never made clear either way).

If you're still concerned about the film and its appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home who may be interested in seeing it, we suggest that you take a closer look at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content.

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ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE

Billy smokes what could be a joint (but it's never made clear).

We see some liquor in Lester's place.

A comment is made about "crack ass" and later about "crack head."

BLOOD/GORE

JD's foot is rather swollen and looks bad after the ATM machine accidentally falls on it.

DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE

JD and Billy smash a truck into a storefront so that they can steal an ATM machine.

Terri discovers that her boyfriend, Kevin, has been fooling around with another woman.

Trying to protect his worker, Calvin lies to a detective about Ricky not being at the shop when he's really there.

Someone drinks Terri's apple juice despite her telling everyone not to (including having a note on the bottle).

A young girl blackmails JD and Billy regarding not telling about the stolen ATM machine.

Jimmy has an elitist and condescending attitude toward the others (who dislike him back, such as Terri), while others dislike Isaac for their perception of him trying to look and act like he's black.

Eddie has a bad attitude toward certain people including a person of another nationality.

Calvin lies to his wife about his dealings with Lester.

A guy runs out of the shop to avoid paying for his haircut (although he later comes back to pay for it).

Some viewers might take offense at Eddie saying that what Rosa Parks did in the past was no big deal (since others did it as well).

Lester is an unscrupulous loan shark who buys Calvin's shop and then won't sell it back to him without a huge profit for himself.

Kevin is disrespectful to Dinka (calling him Mandingo and making guttural sounds) and then to Terri.

Despite being related to Ricky, JD laughs that he's been charged with the ATM theft and that it's his third strike.

We learn that Lester has stolen auto parts in his shop.

FRIGHTENING SCENES

None.

GUNS/WEAPONS

Ricky pulls a handgun from the back of his pants and puts it into his locker. Calvin later returns it to him, but Ricky throws it away into a body of water.

Handguns/Shotgun: Carried by police and held by Lester's bodyguard on others.

IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR

Phrases: "F*ck Jesse Jackson," what sounded like "Get the f*ck out of here," "Bullsh*t," "Big ass," "What the /hell is wrong with you/you doing?" "You're too damn nosy" (said as the reason that a woman's nose is too big), "Oh hell no," "Sit your old ass down," "Kick his ass," "Crazy ass," "Nigger" (said by black men), "Sucker," "Skinny ass," "Nuts" (testicles), "My ass," "Black ass," "Shut up," "Fly ass girlfriend," "Bitch ass," "Crack ass," "Cracker," "Are you retarded?" "Knucklehead," "Crack head," "Fat ass," "Don't drop the soap" (what JD laughingly tells Ricky about going to prison), "Damn sure," "Freezing my balls off" and "Ho'" (whore).

During the opening credits, we see images created by or cut into various haircuts.

A person jokes that another person's "ass is so big" that it looks like "two midgets in a sleeping bag."

Ricky has a tattoo on his neck, while Terri has one on her arm.

Isaac dresses, acts and talks as if he's a stereotypical black rapper.

JUMP SCENES

None.

MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE)

A tiny bit of suspenseful music plays in one scene.

MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE)

Some songs had lyrics that could not be understood, thus offering the possibility of potential objectionable material.

PROFANITY

At least 1 "f" word (with 3 others that sounded like that while another is an incomplete "mother-f"), 12 "s" words, 1 slang term for female genitals ("trim"), 48 asses (1 used with "hole"), 22 hells, 17 damns, 4 uses of "G-damn" and 1 use each of "God," "Oh God," "Swear to God" and "Oh Lord" as exclamations.

SEX/NUDITY

Terri shows a little cleavage in several scenes.

A guy comments that an "ass is like money" in that you can never have too much. A discussion then ensues about the difference between a woman with "a big ass" and a "big-ass woman."

Isaac passionately kisses his girlfriend and grabs her clothed butt twice as they say good-bye on the street (the camera focuses on her butt as she walks off).

There's some talk about circumcising women in some other country where they clip off anything that's extra.

From a distance, we see some posters in the backroom of the barbershop that show scantily clad women (in bikinis with cleavage, etc.).

Mr. Wallace says that he's going to turn the barbershop into a gentleman's club where the women will be dressed like barbers and "they'll give you a trim and you can get some trim."

The camera focuses on a woman's clothed butt.

Ricky tells Dinka how to get women and then comments on how Captain Kirk got all of that "booty."

After Terri tells Kevin to hit the road, he says that she's not that fine and that he only liked her because of that "thing you did in bed."

Eddie jokes about Calvin not being able to "get it up" and Viagra not working for him.

JD mockingly tells Ricky not to "drop the soap" in prison.

A comment is made about "get your freak on."

SMOKING

Ricky smokes once, as does Billy (although the latter could have been a joint, but that's never made clear).

TENSE FAMILY SCENES

Calvin and his wife bicker about some about his business dealings.

TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT

Isaac, who's white, appearing to act as if he's trying to talk, sound and dress like he's black (he says that's just the way he is).

The various issues brought up in the barbershop such as reparations for slavery, Rosa Parks, O.J. Simpson, Rodney King, etc.

VIOLENCE

A truck is purposefully backed into a storefront, smashing the wall and windows, etc. and the back bumper is pulled off before an ATM machine is then yanked from the wall.

A man pushes another man and hits him on the head with something in a store.

Terri pushes Kevin's lover to the floor and we hear other violence and breaking sounds from the room.

Ricky purposefully nicks someone with his clippers, but there's no blood.

JD's fingers are accidentally crushed against a railing (but he's later okay).

The ATM machine accidentally lands on JD's leg, injuring it.

Billy chases after a guy who owes him money and punches him several times in the body.

Billy tries taking a fire ax to an ATM machine, but the ax breaks (we then see a montage of him hitting it).

A woman repeatedly smashes a guy's car with a baseball bat (breaking the windows and denting other areas, etc.).

Terri keeps pushing Kevin on the face in an attempt to make him leave the shop. He then starts to come after her, but Dinka steps in and punches Kevin several times (and others have to restrain Dinka).

Calvin angrily kicks some lockers in the backroom.

JD grabs Billy by the neck and then flips him over onto the ground.

Billy struggles with JD over control of a blowtorch.

Ricky punches JD in the face and Lester's bodyguard then holds a handgun on them.

Reviewed August 27, 2002 / Posted September 13, 2002

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