Sherman Klump/Buddy Love: Eddie Murphy
Carla Purty: Jada Pinkett
Harlan Hartley: James Coburn
Dean Richmond: Larry Miller
Directed by: Tom Shadyac
Screenplay by: David Sheffield, Barry W. Blaustein, Tom Shadyac and Steve Oedekerk. Based on the motion picture written by Jerry Lewis and Bill Richmond.
Running time: 95 minutes. Rated PG-13 (for crude humor and sexual references).
A fter the disastrous "A Vampire in Brooklyn", Eddie Murphy bounces back with an outrageous presentation.
His "Nutty Professor" is based very much on Jerry Lewis'--with one difference--our man
Klump is quite...obese. Possessing an abundance of the adipose stuff, he is, quite
understandably, not a very social individual, which is a shame since he's got a heart as
good as gold. He's also extremely brainy and equally lubberly. When he is not restructuring the DNA configurations of furried creatures and researching ways to cure obesity,
he is knocking over candy jars and chairs. Klump could also be observed in the vicinity of a television set,
candy bars close at hand. His mentor from a distance is a Richard Simmons like chap (it's
Murphy). Apparently none of the dietary stuff his fridge hosts is chipping away the mass--
quite possibly because when Klump snacks, he snacks with gusto. During the course of one of his
hog sessions, he is interrupted by Carla Purty (Jada Pinkett), a comely graduate student
who immediately prattles, gushes and generally praises everything from his research to his
erudite reputation. Something along these lines from someone along her lines
was exactly what Klump had been feeling he could do with. To a man who, hitherto had only
rodents and an impossibly corpulent family as understanding company, Carla's was ripe treatment. The attention she bestows in that fleeting meeting rattles
around in that empty heart of his and he pushes along with life making a mental note to
summon up the courage, one day, and ask her out.
A sub-plot involves Klump getting into murky waters with the Dean (Larry Miller) over some research funds--the purse strings of which are held by a local captain of the industry who is keen to obtain first hand knowledge of Klump's obesity research before he will part with the hard earned. The hard earned been of a significant nature, the Dean keeps close tabs on Klump and that makes the latter hungry. Visiting his family later that evening, he discloses his transient parley with Carla, which is lost in Papa Klump's display of his colon purgation skills. The Klump family (played entirely by Murphy) dinner scene is one of the better pieces of film making in recent memory. The dialogues are crass but funny on most levels, and Shadyac ("Ace Ventura") uses the occasion skilfully to establish Klump as the refined one in the family--and perhaps something about that contrast gives the man the courage to ask Carla out.
He does so in a nice little scene and they make arrangements to feed in each other's company at a popular nightclub. The engagement turns sour when a nasty comic at the joint turns him into the laugh of the night, forcing Klump to purse the lips in mortification.
Predictably, the binge rankles him so much that he returns to the lab, imbibes a bit of the glowing blue stuff and is transformed into Buddy Love. That is the first time we see
Murphy as the Lord created him, and the dissimilarity between the two major characters he plays
hits us head on. Credit goes to the special effects sorcery of
three-time Oscar winner Rick Baker. Despite the sheaths of latex, every expression comes
across lucidly. There are a plethora of other magical
moments--the King-Kong situation, where Klump mutates into a giant, and the exploding Klump scene are sweetly
executed.
In playing Buddy Love, Murphy sticks closer to home turf and although there is no obvious reason for Carla to indulge him, she does and the rest of the movie has Klump--in an effort to win over the damsel's affections--alternating between his 400lb. self and the greasy Love. The final scene is a bit retrospective with the two egos of Klump squaring off in public view and Klump, ultimately, learns to live with his bulk
With "The Nutty Professor", Murphy is back with a flourish. In the process, he's
fabricated an indelible set of characters who should be viewed by incoming generations
with some amazement.
Reviewed 6/29/1996
Copyright©1996, Mesmer Productions. All rights reserved.
