Ever since black sheriff Cleavon Little took himself hostage to stave off racist townsfolk in Blazing Saddles, the dichotomy between white and black cultures has been comic gold. And now here comes Undercover Brother, a spoof of, nominally, blaxploitation movies in which a secret organisation dedicated to eradicating black culture meets its match in superfly secret agent, Undercover Brother (Griffin).
Great gags include adroit digs at Friends, Frasier and mayonnaise, aka black mans Kryptonite and the super-elastic Griffin is a real find. But the rest of the cast including Kattan, a Mike Myers with half the fat, none of the laughs mug shamelessly, while director Lee bludgeons every joke so relentlessly its amazing bellylaughs are still there to be had. Despite its obvious debt to Mr. Powers, this isnt the black Austin. Damn!