Well, the good news is that The Original Kings Of Comedy finds Spike Lee returning to humour after an unduly long spell in Dramasville. But the bad news is that the humour in question belongs to other people. In fact, The Original Kings Of Comedy turns out to be An American Stand-Up Comedy Concert Film. Not that there’s much doubt concerning the comic chops of its four Afro-American subjects, including Lee regular Bernie Mac and Cedric The Entertainer.
Unfortunately, though, much of the material is destined to fly straight over the heads of most British viewers. Moreover, even while laughing at lines like, “Black people don’t do bungee-jumping, it’s too much like lynching,” you’re still left thinking that the funniest man in the building was not actually in front of the camera.