"...we should embrace who we are as a black people," says one defender of the new, and controversial black comedy, "Soul Plane."

Here's some of what he's talking about, according to Greg Braxton's article for the Chicago Tribune.

"Soul Plane's" dominant image in the trailer and advertising is a purple-colored plane equipped with hydraulics that allow it to bounce like a lowrider. NWA Airlines is headquartered at Malcolm X Terminal, which is also home to a "99 cent" store and a basketball court.

Passengers in "low class" snack on fried chicken and sip malt liquor out of 40-ounce bottles. There's a dance club and a craps table on board. Several of the boarders are sex-crazed, including one excited couple who take the "mile-high" club to new heights inside -- and outside -- the plane.

The "pilot" (rapper Snoop Dogg) hired at the last minute has no idea how to fly a plane but has no trouble getting "high" in the cockpit. The "N-word" is sprinkled liberally throughout the film.

.....Tom Arnold plays one of the few white characters -- a bumbling vacationer named Elvis Hunkee whose young girlfriend, Barbara (Missi Pyle), becomes attracted to a black male passenger who brags about his anatomical gifts.

OK, black identity checklist. Cruisin'? Check. Hoops? Check. Poverty? Check. Fried chicken? Check. Swillin' 40s? Check. Dancin'? Check. Gamblin'? Check. Schtuppin'? (A Yiddish word, you'll have to excuse me). Check.

Yeah, that about covers it.

Despite the obvious, over-the-top nature of the parody, many folks aren't amused. Here's one.

Actress Anne-Marie Johnson, the national chairwoman of the equal employment opportunity branch of the Screen Actors Guild, said the filmmakers and cast have no respect for the "scars `Soul Plane' leaves on the culture. It's all about the `right now.'"

Johnson, who starred in the 1987 comedy "Hollywood Shuffle," which makes fun of black stereotypes in Hollywood, added: "Nothing has changed since `Hollywood Shuffle.' In fact, it's gotten worse."

Read this earlier Rosenblog post on "Soul Plane." Especially the comments from Larry Evans in the body of the piece.

Posted by Matt Rosenberg at June 6, 2004 12:46 PM

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