What’s Aged the Best?
Halle Berry’s performance receives the final first choice; Jeffrey Holder’s ad pitches, the Martin television origin story, period slang, Eddie Murphy’s reactions and clothes, the role reversal, Strangé ads, Star Trek riff, Angela’s breakup, and the heartbreak-and-recovery arc are also praised.
In the discussion (14)
Approx. transcript time · 01:17:03Read transcript
- Jeffrey Holder makes the deliberately vulgar Kissable ad pitch funny through the character’s sincere disappointment at being restrained.
- The episode reports that Murphy’s praise of Martin Lawrence and Tisha Campbell helped inspire their pairing on Martin.
- “Hammer time” and “the twizzah” remain instantly recognizable bits from the movie.
- Murphy’s comic orgasm and Grace Jones’s helicopter entrance are singled out as physical and visual comedy.
- Angela is praised as an unusually complete romantic-comedy character whose humor, warmth and natural presence were underused later.
- The film’s gender role reversal remains clear in how Jacqueline controls the sexual relationship with Marcus.
- The first Strangé commercial and Eartha Kitt’s horrified reaction preserve the campaign’s escalating absurdity.
- Marcus improvising Spock Jenkins is praised as an early example of casual pop-culture conversation inside a movie.
- Angela’s breakup line and real slap give the emotional turn force.
- Marcus’s no-tie wardrobe is described as sharp and still wearable.
- The loss and recovery of Marcus’s confidence is treated as an identifiable relationship arc.
- Halle Berry’s charisma and complete performance receive the final selection.
- A longer discussion argues Black actors can receive different, often richer opportunities from Black directors, producers and writers.
- Berry’s uneven 1990s roles are contrasted with the promise visible in Boomerang.