Undercover Brother
Universal Pictures | Release Date: May 31, 2002 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
69
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 30 Critic Reviews
Positive:
24
Mixed:
5
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Film ThreatMarcus D. Russell
See this film and laugh your ass off, and in between your tears of joy learn the true cause of racial and ethnic division. Read full review
90
NewsweekDevin Gordon
Hilarious, affectionate spoof.
88
Miami HeraldRene Rodriguez
The movie isn't just hilarious: It's witty and inventive, too, and in hindsight, it isn't even all that dumb. Read full review
83
Portland OregonianShawn Levy
It's a goofball of a movie and a throwaway, but it's also completely free of self-import and the slightest hint of sentiment -- a perfect light entertainment that's guaranteed to launch itself as a franchise.
80
New Times (L.A.)Gregory Weinkauf
Not only is Undercover Brother the funniest spy-thriller since "The Nude Bomb" (oh, behave), it feels like the proper sequel to "The Blues Brothers," crossing all kinds of lines between cartoonish buffoonery and genuine compassion for its characters.
80
L.A. WeeklyMark Olsen
The film works no matter which side of the racial divide you're on, because nothing unites an audience quite like making fun of everyone. Read full review
80
The A.V. ClubNathan Rabin
The rare popcorn movie that delivers. High-spirited and kinetic, it's the most endearingly goofy low comedy since "How High." Read full review
80
VarietyJoe Leydon
A frequently inspired hit-and-miss burlesque that definitely hits more than it misses. Read full review
80
Chicago ReaderCheryl Ross
This send-up of 70s blaxploitation flicks mixes parody and social commentary to make larger points about the current state of American culture and race relations. The audience I saw the film with was almost choking with laughter. Read full review
80
Washington PostAnn Hornaday
May well wind up being the smartest bonehead comedy of the summer. Read full review
80
SalonStephanie Zacharek
A joyful mix of high and low humor, pulled off with style and an eye for glamour (Danielle Hollowell deserves special praise for her costumes; she's the high priestess of fitted snakeskin). Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesJan Stuart
A funkadelic fun ride that shrewdly reinvigorates the eye-popping styles and pulpy veneer of '70s blaxploitation flicks. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
This is a smart, spirited spoof that will leave you with a smile on your face - and an appetite for some serious '70s funk to play on the eight-track in your solid gold Cadillac convertible. Read full review
75
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
It has a premise that never stops percolating.
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
Seems breezier and less self-conscious than the Mike Myers franchise. Read full review
75
New York Daily NewsJami Bernard
Satires like this tend to throw a lot of stuff at the wall, and in Undercover Brother, a surprising amount sticks.
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
The picture is crammed with shameless satire, engaging moments of pure silliness and jokes that border on the outrageous. It combines relentless energy with an aura of good nature for a formula that works. Read full review
75
USA TodayClaudia Puig
The soundtrack (which includes James Brown, Michael Jackson and The Commodores) is better than a K-Tel "Best of the '70s" compilation, and the broad physical comedy is as reliable as a brick house. Read full review
75
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
Malcolm Lee's brilliant documentary about American race relations. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneMark Caro
Has such a cheerfully zingy energy that you keep rooting for it even when its jokes turn flatter than a jump shot at a YMCA pickup game. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleMarc Savlov
It's far from perfect -- as many jokes fall flat as succeed -- but like Undercover Brother himself, it's smarter than most, and twice as solid. Read full review
67
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
Griffin & Co. manage to be spectacularly outrageous, several of the gag sequences are hilariously imaginative and there's something almost deliciously liberating in the film's determination to make good-natured fun of what previously has been a very sacred movie cow. Read full review
63
New York PostJonathan Foreman
Boisterously amusing. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Jason Anderson
Undercover Brother is very much a hero of our time. After all, the character began not in the 1970s, but three years ago as a cartoon on a Web site. Read full review
60
The New York TimesDana Stevens
The one-liners are clever enough and the physical comedy and pop-culture goofing sufficiently dumb and broad to make Undercover Brother, a reasonably pleasant experience. Read full review
58
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
Lee's images of black and white stereotypes are agreeably silly yet altogether too thin and vanilla safe. Read full review
50
Village VoiceDennis Lim
Much of Undercover Brother plays as a funnier, if similarly addled, "Bamboozled." Read full review
40
Washington PostDesson Thomson
Some of it is funny in a Zucker brothers slapstick way. And as the Man's geeky lieutenant, Chris Kattan has some amusingly kooky business. But there's not enough to sustain the comedy. Ultimately, the movie's short running time becomes its finest quality. Read full review
40
TV Guide MagazineSteve Simels
Saturday Night Live veteran Chris Kattan more or less steals the film as the racially confused Mr. Feather, a white supremacist bad guy whose speech patterns tend to get down and funky against his will. Read full review
25
Boston GlobeRenee Graham
Tries to wring laughs from just about every dusty stereotype about blacks and whites imaginable. But it's all cheap, lazy, and unoriginal. Read full review
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