Review of Coming to America (1988) by ?۩ Iñvért Ð — 23 May 2009

Arguably Eddie Murphy's strongest and most cutting edge film is a fabulous fish-out-of-water story with daring jokes and which hides an honest and poignant story underneath its broad, absurdist, comedy.

Although the 1980's production values let down the "opulent" African palace sequences....it seems that the more dated this movie gets, the sharper and more biting and relevant the satire becomes.

Murphy is in fine form and lets the gags balance out his limited comic ability while Arsenio Hall and James Earl Jones practically steal every scene they're in and the dynamically turning plot surprisingly rises above its predictable settings.

Genuinely funny and an intelligently cynical commentary on the American way of life. A classic.