After a career hiatus following on from a series of commercial and critical flops, Eddie Murphy is back with Netflix in a return to form for the comedic star.

Dolemite is my Name follows the story of the now legendary Rudy Ray Moore (Eddie Murphy), charting his rise from unknown stand up comedian into a blaxploitation movie star through his alter ego, Dolemite. Narratively the film is what you would come to expect from this bio-pic sub-genre following the rise of a ‘So bad they’re good’ filmmaker, the story beats reminded me most of the recent ‘The Disaster Artist’ and the way that film dealt with its cult film subject matter yet what allows this to stand out amongst the crowd definitely comes from the performances

Murphy reminds us of why we once loved him in the first place, before the days of Norbit and Meet Dave he was a truly talented comedic actor and it really shines here. The supporting cast are also great with too many worthy appearances to list here, Wesley Snipes perhaps being a highlight as the film’s eccentric director and somewhat movie star, D’Urville Martin

The film really picks up when we reach the portion that revolves around the making of the cult picture Dolemite. We witness Moore lead a cobbled together crew from all his various friendship circles to create something that they are all truly passionate for, and for me that is the key to the film’s success. The passion Moore had for his work oozes from the screen, again thanks to an electric central performance.

What keeps the film from reaching greater heights is the familiarity of the story, with the script coming from the people who brought us Tim Burton’s Ed Wood, it is clear to see the comparisons narratively between the two productions, this can keep the narrative from offering any real interesting turns due to feeling always one step ahead of the script in some ways.

The film leaves you feeling energised much like the crew on set are, with some equally great closing moments reminding the viewer of just how influential Ray Moore was, and still is to this day.

Dolemite Is My Name an energetic and fun film that could be what Eddie Murphy needs to usher in his cinematic comeback over the next few years, hopefully they are all of this high quality.

Director: Craig Brewer
Writers: Scott Alexander, Larry Karaszewski
Stars: Eddie Murphy, Keegan-Michael Key, Mike Epps
Kyle Gaffney
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