Social miscreants and two-bit hoods Durell (Ice Cube) and LeeJohn (Tracy Morgan) are in desperate need of cash. They owe a Jamaican psycho twelve large for some wheelchairs they misplaced, and Durell’s baby mama is threatening to take their son to Atlanta if her ex doesn’t come up with the seventeen large she needs to keep her hair salon open.

Desperate times call for desperate measures, so the two pals plot to rob a church, but their plan goes awry when the pastor (Chi McBride) and several members of his congregation unexpectedly turn up. Complicating matters is the fact that the church’s funds are nowhere to be found. Durell and LeeJohn take the pastor and his charges hostage, hoping to sweat the location of the money out of them. But the tables are turned when the worshipers turn on their captors and each other.

CRITIQUE

It was only a matter of time before the Tyler Perry juggernaut spawned imitators; First Sunday definitely adheres to the Perry template, and I don’t mean that as a compliment. Writer/director David E. Talbert (who, much like Perry, also first made a name for himself as a playwright) combines broad, unfunny comedy with broad, unfunny stereotypes, puts them in the service of a lame, contrived plot, and then throws in some howlingly bad social commentary. The end result is a sloppy, disjointed mess designed to separate a certain segment of the public from their hard-earned cash.

Many people argue that Perry--and by extension his imitators--serves the world by providing entertainment aimed at a demographic that has largely been ignored or disenfranchised by mainstream Hollywood. I think there’s a great deal of merit in that argument, but I also think that much of the product used to plug up the hole makes for some of the worst filmed entertainment you’ll ever encounter. Perry’s movies are poorly written, directed, shot and acted, and the television show that bears his name looks like it was put together by a group of badgers that stumbled across three cameras and a laugh track.

Much the same is true for First Sunday, which consists almost entirely of recycled junk. It’s a dumb sitcom during its first half hour, becomes a saccharine drama during its second act, and suddenly morphs into a social polemic for the finale. It’s like having three bad movies in one, which I suppose it some sort of bargain, but not one worth the effort it takes to open your eyes to watch it.

Nothing works here. The comedy, which is mostly people shouting at each other and acting like buffoons, isn’t funny in the least. The dramatic moments have no impact, primarily because they’re about as clichéd as they can possibly be; they also consist mostly of people shouting at each other, although there are moments when the characters lower their voices, although this is done so they can launch into spell-it-all-out speechifying or the spouting of platitudes, which is just as bad as the shouting.

And the social commentary, which is laughable in both its misguided logic and earnestness, is ridiculous. I’m not sure if Talbert means us to take the courtroom finale literally, but even if he doesn’t it would still be hard to swallow. The ridiculous turn of events, absurd message and shameless pathos combine to form fifteen of the stupidest minutes ever committed to film. I’m sorry, but I can’t accept a moral delivered by people who just fifteen minutes earlier were carrying on like Stepin Fetchit at his most unhinged.

It also wasn’t smart of Talbert to work a subplot about a salon into an Ice Cube vehicle, as this only serves to remind one of the infinitely superior Barbershop, which does everything right this movie does wrong (and makes it look easy). Had I not already known Talbert was an established writer, I never would have guessed he’d ever laid pen to paper before. I hope in the future he can find a project for which his talents are more suited, such as, say, Archie’s Pals ‘n’ Gals.

Cube (who also co-produced), continues the downward spiral he’s been for the past several years; the man who made such and impact in Boyz N the Hood seems determined to find out just how lazy a performer he can become. I think Morgan can be hilarious in small doses (his Rocket Jones character was one of the few good things to come out of SNL during the past decade; just the thought of him telling Britney Spears to hike up her skirt is enough to crack me up), but here he’s asked to do little more than mug and yell, which definitely isn’t endearing.

As for second-billed Katt Williams, well, let me just say that it appears he was hired because Talbert believed putting Andy Dick in blackface would have offended some people. In a movie chock full of stereotypes that are meant to be overlooked simply because of the individuals involved, Williams’s fey choir director is by far the most distressing. And I almost pity poor Chi McBride, who could normally run rings around the rest of the cast but is here saddled with a character whose function it is to sit around and roll his eyes at everyone else.

But casting dishonors go to Rickey Smiley and Tiffany Pollard. Smiley, a comedian (and I use that term because what he does is supposed to be comedy; he’s not at all funny) best known for making prank phone calls (how original) appears in drag as a crotchety old woman. What’s the point of this? Beats me, but if it works for Perry... Pollard, better as New York from all of those VH1 “reality” shows, shows up briefly as a bitchy client of Cube’s baby mama; just think--a real actress went without work so Pollard’s fifteen minutes could be unnecessarily extended.

THE VIDEO

The quality of this disc’s 1.85:1/1080p transfer is inversely proportional to the quality of the movie itself; no movie this amateurish should look this slick. (I wouldn’t hire him to shoot a sweeping historical epic, but it’s clear from his work here that director of photography Alan Caso was one of the few skilled people on the set.) Colors are solidly reproduced and black levels are consistently strong. There’s a smooth film-like appearance throughout, although depth and minute detail are slightly lacking in some of the more dimly lit shots.

THE AUDIO

The Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track (available in English, French, or Portuguese) favors the front channels for much of the movie’s length, although the few exterior scenes are suitably atmospheric, and the handful of hip-hop and gospel songs sprinkled throughout employ every corner of the soundstage. Dialogue remains clear and intelligible throughout. Spanish and Thai Dolby Digital 5.1 tracks are also included. English, English SDH, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Korean, Thai, Arabic, and Dutch subtitles are available.

THE EXTRAS

The commentary with writer/director David E. Talbert is enthusiastic, but it’s still a discussion of filmmaking given by a man who doesn’t understand any of the fundamental elements of the job. In the end I found it to be a waste of time. 

Thirteen deleted scenes (35 minutes total) are also included. Most are simply extended versions of scenes in the final cut, but all of the material was completely extraneous. Talbert supplies optional commentary for these scenes.

A gag reel (4 minutes) serves up the usual flubbed lines, missed cues, and on-set crackups.

An outtake reel (4 minutes) serves up more of the same.

David E. Talbert’s Camera Wrap Speech (3 minutes) is footage of the director making a short speech and delivering gifts to Cube, Morgan, and Caso.

Hood Robbin’ with the First Sunday Cast and Crew (16 minutes) is a rote EPK making-of featurette.

The Almighty Version Fact Track is a lame pop-up trivia track. The info provided is scant and largely has nothing to do with the movie.

FINAL THOUGHTS

First Sunday serves to remind one how much of a find a good modern comedy can be, but it does so by being the antithesis of a good modern comedy. Avoid this one.