Soul Men

An African-American The Sunshine Boys (with a little Grumpy Old Men thrown in for good measure), director Malcolm Lee's Soul Men boasts a few good musical numbers and features palpable chemistry between costars the late Bernie Mac and Samuel L. Jackson. Unfortunately, that's just about all the film has going for it. Mac and Jackson play erstwhile backup singers who split from their Motown-era group to pursue a career that never really took off. Approached by MTV to reunite for an Apollo Theater memorial concert 25 years after dissolving their partnership, the two men decide to tune up their old act in some small venues, along the way picking up a recently deceased girlfriend's adult daughter (Sharon Leal), who just might be the offspring of one of the pair. Naturally, there's a lot of bickering on the road, permitting the two stars to hurl insults at each other with abandon, but the mostly age-related jokes are corny, the road-trip situations blandly predictable, and a sexual encounter between Mac's character and a middle-aged groupie (Jennifer Coolidge) just plain creepy. Soul Men was the last film completed by Mac and R&B legend Isaac Hayes, who both died in August 2008, and deserved a better cinematic sendoff. Not recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by director Malcolm D. Lee and writers Matthew Stone and Rob Ramsey, “The Soul Men: Bernie Mac & Samuel L. Jackson” featurette on the costars (10 min.), featurettes on “The Cast” (8 min.), “A Tribute to Bernie Mac” (8 min.), “A Tribute to Isaac Hayes” (4 min.), “Bernie Mac at the Apollo” (4 min.), and “Director Malcolm D. Lee” (3 min.), a behind-the-scenes segment on the “Boogie Ain't Nuttin'” song (3 min.), and trailers. Bottom line: a decent extras package for a disappointing comedy.] (E. Hulse)