Barbershop: The Next Cut

Having never seen the original Barbershop movie, or its 2004 sequel, I was not sure what to expect from The Next Cut.  What I did find was an often surprisingly funny and very heartfelt comedy-drama that not only has the nerve to tackle some real issues, but does so in a way in which there are no real answers in the end.  There is resolution, but just like in life, the real problems are still there.  While the movie can be messy at times (there are too many characters, and a few too many plotlines), this still manages to be a very pleasant surprise.

Ice Cube plays Calvin, a stern and somewhat tough-talking man who owns a small barbershop on the South Side of Chicago.  The shop has been in his family for generations, but Calvin is secretly planning to move his business to a safer location.  His teenage son Jalen (Michael Rainey, Jr.) has been taking an interest in some of the local gangs lately, and getting in fights at school.  He doesn't know how to tell the many people who work in his shop, or his regular customers, as everyone has become like family to him.  That's just the start when it comes to the plots featured in this film, however.  Another involves a sexy co-worker named Draya (Nicki Manaj) who is trying to come between Calvin's friend Rashad (Common) from his girlfriend.  Still another is Calvin and Rashad butting heads over how to raise their kids, since they both seem to be involved in gang activity, and who is to blame.  Everything is brought together when the barbershop decides to offer free haircuts for a full weekend in return to a ceasefire amongst the gangs for 48 hours.

Barbershop: The Next Cut juggles a fine line between humor and pathos, and seems to find a good mix of both.  I can only assume that this is a formula that the cast have perfected over the past films.  It flows well here, and it never feels jarring when it goes from one liners being tossed out by the oldest person at the shop (played by Cedric the Entertainer, under old age make up), to the characters having a serious discussion about economic situations, or the violence that is infecting the streets.  The movie can be a bit hamfisted at times, but it is never preachy, nor does it feel like it's talking down to the audience.  And like I said before, it doesn't pretend to have the answers to the issues it presents, which is a touch I admired.  While you get the sense that Calvin, his family and his friends will be okay, the movie does end on somewhat of an open ended note.  For once, I don't think this is simply to set up a sequel.  Rather, it's the movie playing it smart, and not pretending to know that everything's going to work out the same for everybody.

There are a lot of characters who walk in and out of Calvin's shop, and unfortunately, not everybody gets to be as developed as well as they should.  But through it all is Ice Cube as Calvin, who serves as an anchor for the entire film, and does a fine job of it.  His character and Cube's performance is grounded and likable.  He can join in on the fun during the more comedic moments, but when he has to be serious or deliver a scene with his troubled son, you believe that he is truly torn between doing what he knows is right for his son, and possibly backing away a little so his boy does not resent him - something he can't truly bring himself to do, as he's afraid the Chicago gangs will take him away.  It's a surprisingly multi-layered performance, and it reminds you of what a good actor he can be when he's not doing contractual obligated junk like Ride Along 2 from earlier this year.

There is a sense of honesty here in this film that I enjoyed.  You can tell that the screenwriters and even the actors believe in what they are saying when they are talking about the current problems of Chicago.  There are some genuinely tense moments mixed in with the laughs, and the execution is surprisingly strong, with little sense of a jarring tone, or a sense of abrupt starting and stopping when the movie decides to switch from laughs to drama.  True, there are a few scenes that don't work, and some come dangerously close to mawkish sentimentality.  But, through it all, you can tell that the most of the emotions the movie is creating are coming from a real place, not contrivance.  It doesn't always work, but when it does, this can be a stronger and much smarter film than you may expect walking in.

I actually found myself wishing I could spend more time with these characters.  Whether or not the series continues, I can at least go back and visit the earlier films to see where these people came from, and what led them to this current point.  The Next Cut is a rare and unexpected sequel that actually has something to say, and doesn't feel regurgitated out of creative bankruptcy.

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