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Soul Man (1986)

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Commentaries on this disc:

Commentary 1: Director Steve Miner and actor C. Thomas Howell Rating:9.0/10 (1 vote) [graph]Login to vote or review
Reviewed by frankasu03 on March 19th, 2013:Find all reviews by frankasu03
One of the best varieties of the commentary track is the star-director pairing, especially years removed from their respective project. Such is the example here: C Thomas displays his comedic chops (as fans of "SouthLand" surely know), while Director Miner provides great information about bringing this controversial comedy to life. Of remarkable interest is the reaction from a wide array of African-American celebrities. How such a project, which would admittedly have Zero chance of being made today, could elicit outrage from black entertainers such as Eddie Murphy (who will never work with Steve Miner) and Spike Lee, while also garnering high praise from comic legend Richard Pryor. Divisive, indeed. The Un-P.C. subject matter doesn't prevent the duo from cracking wise on the fashions, fads, and wackiness that was the '80s. You learn that "Soulman" was the project that brought the writers/co-creators of "The Wonder Years" and Steve together, as well as CTH's real off-screen relationship with Rae-Dawn Chong. In addition to some funny riffs on "Quest for Fire." All this, with tales about James Earl Jones and "Willie" from "Alf." This track is the perfect pairing with an '80s comic delight. 9/10