You People contains a cast of some very funny people. And it's co-written by Jonah Hill, who is a funny and very talented guy. His documentary about his therapist, Stutz, is wonderfully done and very touching. But You People is not funny. In fact it is the only time I can think of, since Saturday Night Live, that I've caught Julia Louis Dreyfus is something where she wasn't funny. Maybe you'll snicker or titter here or there. But you'll never outright laugh. The characters and their actions are too cliché, too we've seen all this before, to be funny. The first three quarters of the film are watchable, but just barely so. So, it's supposed to be a comedy film, and it's not funny. The majority of it is barely watchable. At least according to me. So why did I give You People such a high score? Why do I recommend You People. Because it ends up, and I don't even know if this was fully intentional, as a Romeo and Juliet story about how race, especially in America, above all in the U. S., but in most places, has become such a dividing and political issue for parents, more than their children, that it can make it very difficult, if not impossible for young and younger lovers of different races to stay together. And, like so many things, we thought we were past this. What You People wonderfully illustrates is that the outward reasons and behaviors may have changed, but the divisions have become political and social rather than blatant racism. I don't know if You People set out to be that kind of movie. It seems to have set out, or at least it promises to be a comedy. Instead it ends up being a very good social commentary film. So, don't expect to laugh. But do watch the film. It will makes you think. It will make you ponder. It just won't, and I can't stress this enough, make you laugh. Not even a little.
Review of You People
