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Boomerang poster

Boomerang

year 1992decade 90sdirector Reginald Hudlingenre Romantic comedy

117 minutes

Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Eddie Murphy Marcus Graham
Robin Givens Jacqueline Broyer
Halle Berry Angela Lewis
David Alan Grier Gerard Jackson
Martin Lawrence Tyler Hawkins
Grace Jones Helen Strangé
Eartha Kitt Lady Eloise
Chris Rock Bony T

Boomerang | The Rewatchables

host Bill Simmonshost Van Lathanhost Wesley Morris
Explore episodeClose episode

Producer credits not yet identified.

Most Rewatchable Scene

John Witherspoon’s entire dinner sequence is Bill Simmons’s and Van Lathan’s selection; Wesley Morris chooses Grace Jones’s first perfume-boardroom scene. The lunch, Lady Eloise encounter, Robin Givens flirtation, art class, pool game and rooftop reconciliation remain major alternatives.

In the discussion (13)
Approx. transcript time · 00:45:55Read transcript
  • The opening lunch establishes the three friends through Marcus’s dating philosophy and Martin’s asparagus riff.
  • Marcus sleeping with Lady Eloise and then meeting Jacqueline at work is praised as a perfect six-minute comic sequence.
  • Jacqueline’s party flirtation works because Robin Givens matches Eddie Murphy’s confidence and control.
  • The art-class scene is praised for Eddie Murphy imitating the little girl, recalling his earlier comic appeal.
  • The John Witherspoon dinner is praised for its mushroom outfit, sexual advice, bathroom reveal and improvised family chaos.
  • One host argues the dinner also explains Gerard’s vulnerability and why Marcus’s later betrayal hurts him.
  • The pool game makes Marcus’s embarrassment over Angela visible while preserving the friendship’s comic rhythm.
  • The rooftop reconciliation culminates in Martin arriving late to demand another hug and then moves into the P.M. Dawn song.
  • Two hosts select the Witherspoon sequence.
  • Wesley selects Grace Jones’s first boardroom pitch and the “Steel Vagina” suggestion. — Wesley Morris
  • One objection is that the dinner sequence was shoehorned into the story and is not needed for the plot, even though its comic digression is pleasurable.
  • The scene evokes Black theater and its later Tyler Perry counterpart, bringing class tensions into the comedy. — Wesley Morris
  • The chitlins in a wealthy household and Angela being asked to handle them are described as a collision of Black culture and snobbery. — Wesley Morris

What’s Aged the Worst?

The opening lunch's homophobic and transphobic material is identified as an element that has not aged well.

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:47:21Read transcript
  • The panel says the opening lunch's ‘chicks with dicks’ bit has not aged well and identifies its homophobia and transphobia as part of Eddie Murphy's response to rumors about him.

What’s Aged the Best?

Marcus's head tilt on first seeing Robin Givens, and the ‘breathtaking’ exchange, are floated as an early Aged Best answer.

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:49:50Read transcript
  • Marcus tilting his head on first seeing Robin Gibbons and delivering the ‘breathtaking’ line is proposed for Aged Best.

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.

What’s Aged the Worst?

The episode criticizes Marcus overlooking Angela, Jacqueline’s forced Knicks fandom, the synchronized gym routine, the abrupt racist clerk, Tisha Campbell’s one-note role, repeated fade-to-black edits, and pervasive workplace and social sexual harassment.

In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 01:32:02Read transcript
  • Eddie not realizing Halle Berry was hot for ninety minutes is the first answer.
  • Jacqueline’s investment in a random Knicks game is called an artificial way to make her seem like one of the guys.
  • Three friends moving together across identical gym machines feels staged and implausible.
  • The store clerk’s immediate cash warning is criticized as an abrupt, mechanically inserted racism beat, while another host defends its realism.
  • Tisha Campbell’s character is described as one-note and possibly present for one scene too many.
  • Repeated fade-to-black transitions expose a patched-together final act.
  • The hosts identify pervasive sexual harassment across nearly every relationship as the broadest dated element.

The Joey Pants “That Guy” Award

Jeffrey Holder wins for the creepy ad creative, a performer the hosts expect many viewers recognize without knowing by name.

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:37:32Read transcript
  • Jeffrey Holder is selected immediately.
  • The reasoning is that audiences recognize the creepy advertising executive without necessarily knowing Holder’s name.

The Ruffalo / Hanna / Rubinek / Partridge Overacting Award

Grace Jones is chosen for an exaggerated performance, with particular praise for the restaurant leg scene and the energy expected from her casting.

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:37:44Read transcript
  • Grace Jones is the only developed candidate.
  • Her restaurant leg display is praised at mock-Oscar intensity.
  • The panel agrees the performance is dialed up but argues casting Grace Jones necessarily means getting that energy.

The Dion Waiters Award for Best Heat Check Performance

John Witherspoon is chosen over Chris Rock, Bebe Drake, Eartha Kitt, the unnamed man commenting on the nipple, and the art-class girl; his nine minutes are proposed as a Hall of Fame heat check.

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:38:34Read transcript
  • The candidates include Chris Rock, John Witherspoon, BB Drake, Eartha Kitt, the unnamed man commenting on the nipple, and the girl in the art class.
  • Witherspoon’s dinner is considered possibly the movie’s most memorable scene.
  • His nine minutes are compared to a 29-point performance that swings the score.
  • The panel keeps the Dion Waiters name but places Witherspoon in the prospective category Hall of Fame.

Apex Mountain

Robin Givens, David Alan Grier, Boyz II Men, Reginald Hudlin, P.M. Dawn, Strangé perfume and the three-man pool-game format receive yes votes; Eddie Murphy, Martin Lawrence, Toni Braxton, the 1992 Knicks and chitlins are rejected, while Black romantic comedies remain disputed.

In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 01:45:24Read transcript
  • Robin Givens receives an immediate and emphatic yes.
  • David Allen Greer receives support because the film coincides with In Living Color and showcases his humanity and comic generosity.
  • A correction inserted after recording gives Boys to Men an emphatic unanimous yes.
  • Toni Braxton, Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence are rejected.
  • Reginald Hudlin, P.M. Dawn, Strangé perfume and the unusual three-man pool game receive yes answers.
  • The 1992 Knicks and chitlins are rejected.
  • Black romantic comedies are unresolved: one yes, one undecided answer and one semi-yes limited to Black-themed sex comedy.

What’s Aged the Best?

David Alan Grier's likability, comic humanity, and ability to improve every production are offered as a later Aged Best answer.

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:46:29Read transcript
  • David Allen Greer is praised as extremely likable, unlucky to have gone first in several comic formats, and an actor who adds to every production.

Sequel, Prequel, Limited Series, or All-Black Remake

The answer to whether Boomerang could become a ten-episode show is yes because BET had already remade it as a series, though the hosts do not agree that another version would improve it.

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:53:24Read transcript
  • The category is phrased as whether the movie could be remade as a ten-episode Netflix show.
  • The panel answers that BET already remade it as a show.
  • Whether a new adaptation should be made or would be better remains unanswered.

Who Won the Movie?

Van Lathan selects Halle Berry; Wesley Morris and Bill Simmons select Eddie Murphy. Berry is credited with the film’s most durable breakout role, while Murphy is praised for an unusually mature, generous and vulnerable comic performance.

In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 01:57:47Read transcript
  • Van Lathan answers Halle Berry. — Van Lathan
  • Van argues Berry is the movie’s hidden star and that its love story gave her the stickiest role she had played. — Van Lathan
  • Wesley Morris chooses Eddie Murphy because making the film broadened his interest in Black family and cultural life on screen. — Wesley Morris
  • Wesley praises Murphy’s tenderness, vulnerability and control of Marcus as a character distinct from himself. — Wesley Morris
  • Bill also chooses Murphy and calls it his best adult performance. — Bill Simmons
  • Bill says Murphy uses all the pieces and makes the most people better in the movie. — Bill Simmons
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