Soul Man (1986)

This movie gets a bad rap but it's actually quite interesting in its portrayal stereotypes and racism. It's sad that it was made because there shouldn't be such stereotypes and racism in society. But the movie goes about having a laugh with it all while still showing the ignorance in people. C. Thomas Howell used to be able to act back then and he does a great job. There is fine acting all around particularly from James Earl Jones and Rae Dawn Chong. On the unfortunate side, Leslie Nielson was terribly underused and so out of character as a racist piece of crap. In the end, right prevails over wrong, we have a few laughs, and ponder the idiocy of racism.6.1 / 10 stars--Zoooma, a Kat Pirate Screener

There is a lesson to be learned here but this movie thinks that the lesson needs to be learned with showing stupid characters learn what is basically common knowledge to everybody else.All the characters are stupid in this "comedy", even those who are supposed to be intelligent. First of all, who would ever mistake C. Thomas Howell with makeup for a black man? I know this is a movie but this kind of comedy is strictly pre 50's schtick. It's not just because there is a guy in blackface but all the white characters act like Marx Brothers stooges. They don't get it.Here is the biggest problem: The character of James Earl Jones, written as a supposedly intelligent man. Any sign of that is knocked down with a sledge hammer at the end. His actions would have caused riots in the real world.C. Thomas Howell is a virtually forgotten name today and he should consider himself lucky. If he was remembered today it would be because of this. This would have been a truly horrifying legacy.

Before watching this film, I was never expecting a spectacular movie experience. I'll admit to being a fan of those silly fast paced feel good ending 80s comedies, those early Eddie Murphy or Michael J. Fox films being the best example of these. This is the style I was expecting, and I think is what the director was aiming for, but falling very very far from the mark!The premise could have worked: white kid from rich background decides to pass for a poor black boy to get a scholarship to a top American university. In doing so, he learns harsh lessons about racism and class divides, etc... Plenty of room for some fun jokes, taking the mike out of the real life stereotypes at those top American university establishments, and still come out of it without too much complications and a good morality tale. But what you end up with is a film in which you keep waiting for a really good punchline to arrive, no real surprise turn at any point whatsoever and a lot of pent up frustration by the end for having wasted an hour and half of your life.By the standards of those previously mentioned 80s comedies, this films' budget couldn't have been that bad, and although the scripts is basic at best, I'm sure at least a bit more could have extracted from it. The main culprits for this waste of film stock have to be the director who does not seem to have put any thought to the direction or elaboration of his script to put it onto screen, and the lead actor C. Thomas Howell. In the same year, he played the stalked young lead in The Hitcher, which has now become somewhat of an 80s cult reference to horror thrillers; this is to say that Mr Howell was not necessarily a bad actor, but definitely a bad comedian. He has no comic timing, a necessity in this form of entertainment, no real talent at expressional comedy, and has no clue when to keep a serious face and when to lighten-up. Although again a large part of this has to go down to bad directorship. Rae Dawn Chong, in the main female lead, does well with what she has, without ever pushing the film to any kind of redemptive level. Coming the closest to doing this is James Earl Jones, who is so hopelessly under-used you have to wonder if he didn't just walk out on the production when he saw how terrible it was. The same could be said of Julia Louis-Dreyfus(Elaine from Seinfeld) and Leslie Nielsen, who have so little screen time it's easy to forget they were actually in this poor excuse for a movie.When I first bought the DVD to this movie, even though I had no idea how good, or bad(as the case may be), it would be, I was really chuffed with myself, having found it in the sales for 2 pounds. And even more pleased at the till, where it seemed the guy forgot to swipe it properly with the rest of my items so I didn't even pay for it! Now I see the nice man at the till had obviously seen this film, felt sorry for me, and that watching this film was going to be punishment enough that he shouldn't make me pay for it as well.

Soul Man (1986) was a terrible movie that was produced during that era of "quality film making" the eighties. Stars like C. Thomas Howell represented the "new generation" of actors. Like many of THE OUTSIDERS alumni. The movie is about a spoiled rich kid who learns from his father that he has to pay for his own college tuition. Not one to spend the next few years of his life paying his way into one of the biggest university's in the country, C. Thomas Howell does the next best thing besides winning the lottery. He pulls off one the biggest scams in history. Conning the people at Harvard (and the paying audience) into believing he's a Black man.Well the dude pulls of the scam (defying realism and logic) and lives like a "Black" man for awhile. But this lame knock-off of BLACK LIKE ME is bad (and not in the good way). He has to endure the usual racism and bigotry from the while folks. Good times of a free ride in college don't last long. He's outed by some acquaintances and he soon he brought up on fraud charges. This movie tries to get the audience to learn a lesson about acceptance and tolerance. Even though they try to beat the viewers over the head with an empty message, it falls flat. Just another bad movie that derails the young C. Thomas Howell's acting career. Followed (sort of ) by Far Out Man.The movie has quite a few heavy hitters in this one. Julia Louise-Dreyfus, James Earl Jones, Leslie Nielsen, (eighties stalwart Ayre Gross) and Rae Dawn Chong (Tommy's little girl).Not recommended unless you're a fan of 80's films.