Review of Coming to America (1988) by Debbie W — 19 Feb 2011

Eddie Murphy hit the A list hard in the '80s and has been an attraction in the movies ever since. Though not one of his best critically, Coming to America is a heartwarming comedy that can always be enjoyed.

Eddie Murphy stars (and plays multiple roles) as Prince Akeem of Zamunda, who is arranged to be married, but he is unhappy that he is forced to marry a woman he doesn't love. So Akeem and his servant travel to New York with the secret agenda to find a woman he can love. But, Akeem refuses to promote himself as a prince, or to have any money whatsoever. This heartwarming and hilarious story of riches to rags and throwing away all but personal dignity to find true happiness is a great film to watch at any time. But this movie is also a pretty risky one too, with about 90% of the cast being black there are many different colourful characters, ranging from all sorts of comedic steriotypes to James Earl Jones being EXTREMELY HIGH royalty. But this is a blacksploitation movie that is thuroughly lovable.

Directed by John Landis, famous for many great comedies and other films with Eddie Murphy, his style of keeping the enviroment looking natural, yet with creative comedic timing is wonderful to watch. There is a wide variety of sets and costumes, ranging from extremely poor to extremely rich, this movie is a fantasy tale that fits well with it's opposite visuals. This is famous for being Eddie Murphy's first movie where he plays multiple characters. Him and his co-star, Arsenio Hall, go through a lot of different styles of make-up effects to look as different as possible, which looks fantastic while watching the movie.

I personally enjoy this movie a lot. It's one of Eddie Murphy's best, and it's a love story that you cannot resist to watch. It's appeal is so great, and the comedy is even greater. It's a must watch for anyone who's a fan of Eddie Murphy, or who just loves to watch good classic comedies.