Why coming to america

Lavelle Jermaine Fowler — who plays the long-lost son of the prince-turned-King Akeem Eddie Murphy — points out to his bona fide Zamunda romantic interest, Mirembe Nomzamo Mbatha , that her love of American movies ignores that American cinema now includes remakes nobody asked for.

Even today, the first Coming to America holds its own as a comedy classic. It evokes nostalgia cross-culturally and across several generations who came of age during it, or at least watched it in the decade or so that came after, part of a much-loved childhood canon. It has none of these. The entire problem of Coming 2 America is not only is the whole not greater than the sum of its parts, there are simply no great parts.

What does stand out though is how the film employs and weaponizes stereotypes of both Africans and black Americans in its depictions. On the one hand, Zamundans are yet again represented as simple-minded, the emphasis on their backwardness might even be more prevalent in the sequel than in the original.

But, more than anything in the world, the noble bachelor yearns to be loved for who he is, and not for his title. Eddie Murphy is Prince Akeem Did you know Edit. Trivia After the make-up and clothing was applied for the Jewish character Saul, Eddie Murphy wanted to test the make-up and costume out. He got a golf cart and drove from one studio department to another in Paramount Studios. He would get out of the cart and say in his regular voice, "Hi. I'm Eddie Murphy. Goofs at around 33 mins When Akeem goes to get his ponytail cut, the stand-in for Saul is visible in the mirror.

Quotes Prince Akeem : [shouting from the outside fire escape of his apartment in a rough part of Queens, New York] Good morning, my neighbors! Voice : Hey, fuck you! Crazy credits The "thanks" list in the closing credits lists the fictitious Zamundan Film Commission. Connections Edited into Yoostar 2: In the Movies User reviews Review. Top review. Pure 80's fun And the film carries such a tender naivety in its portrayal of the fictional country of Zamunda and Royal Family's lifestyle that it makes today's films depressingly cynical in their desperate attempt to copy reality by any means or feature likable losers making their bones on redeeming bitches.

Yes, a country like Zamunda is very improbable but that makes the beginning of the film so fascinating. That Prince Akeem, waking up on his 21st birthday, would be treated with such an exaggerated devotion echoes one of Cinema's greatest values: escapism and dream. It doesn't work in every case but here it does and for a simple reason: the "Coming to America" plot line perfectly contrasts with the "Coming from Zamunda"set-up, Zamunda had to be in a total opposition with New York for the film's own comedic purposes.

Only this time, it's not a wags to riches story but quite the opposite, it's a Cinderella story told in reverse since it's the Prince Akeem who comes to America to marry a woman, and as he explains to his friend Semmi Aresnio Hall : "I want a woman who will arouse my intellect as well as my loins".

This premise leads to a succession of situations so funny that you almost forget about the romantic purpose of Prince Akeem's trip and the presence of Arsenio Hall as the second lead of the film is responsible of that as he literally outshines all the other cast members and creates the perfect comic-straight man duo that this kind of stories need. Semi's priceless look from the window when Akeem shouts: "Life. Real life! A thing that we have been denied for far too long!

After they find a place to live and a job, the whole New York's discovery part is a tribute to the actors' extraordinary talent to portray different characters from chatting barbers to drags, from singers to pervert reverends, they both nail their roles and we, as viewers, are invited to spot them every once in a while. Eddie Murphy is top notch as the old Jewish man in the barbershop, such an uncanny impression that I admit it fooled me the first time I saw it.

The beauty of "Coming to Africa" is that it features two levels of true appreciation, one on the story and another through a series of sketch-like vignettes demonstrating two sides of the actors' talent, without overdoing them. In a way, "Coming to America" prefigures the appeal of Eddie Murphy's "Nutty Professor" and his wonderful talent as a comedian when given a good role, and Prince Akeem is one of his best.

Murphy was the undisputed box office king of the s, propelling his explosive debut in 48 Hrs. Screenplay duties were handed off to David Sheffield and Barry W. Blaustein, who began writing for Murphy when he was on Saturday Night Live. The intensity of the schedule it began shooting six months before its summer release date and the big egos involved did not, by most accounts, make for a harmonious set.

But whatever the tensions on set, the collaboration yielded rewards. Landis, who had just read a book about Jewish comedians donning blackface in the vaudeville days, suggested flipping the script. Those pleasures were barely noted by mainstream critics when Coming to America was released in June.

And then the lawsuits began. Five separate suits were filed, by everyone from struggling screenwriters to an actual African prince who claimed the film told the unauthorized story of his life , but the biggest name was political columnist Art Buchwald, who said he sold Paramount a Murphy-targeted treatment called King for a Day in Beyond questions of authorship, another quiet controversy haunted Coming to America in — a question of representation.