Review: Carbon Copy

RIP George Segal. Here’s…not one of his better films.

 

A racial farce in which rich businessman George Segal is visited at work by an African-American teenager (Denzel Washington) claiming to be his long-lost son from a college relationship with an African-American woman. Apparently this news could turn Segal’s world upside down, a world in which his wife (Susan Saint James) won’t have sex with him, his daughter dislikes him, and his anti-Semite father-in-law (Jack Warden) intimidates the hell out of him. Paul Winfield turns up briefly as an African-American lawyer.

 

This big screen debut won’t rank as the worst film Denzel Washington has ever made (“Man on Fire” and “Virtuosity” spring to mind). However, this 1981 comedy-drama from director Michael Schultz (“Cooley High”, “Car Wash”, the camp classic “The Last Dragon”) and writer Stanley Shapiro (“Pillow Talk”, “Bedtime Story”) is probably one film that Denzel wouldn’t want to talk about or point out on his CV. Whilst I wouldn’t mind betting this would’ve been seen as a progressive take in the 1970s (and it must be pointed out that director Schultz is actually African-American himself!), even by 1981 this material would’ve surely been rather outdated. In 2021 it’s frankly useless.

 

How outdated is this film? It opens with an attempt at humour from the late, usually great George Segal basically trying to force himself on his wife and making homophobic remarks to boot. Yikes, this is before he finds out he has a black son. The whole thing is full of stupidly unrealistic characters. Movies don’t have to be realistic, however these people – all of them – don’t behave like anyone I’d call ‘normal’ even for 1981. They’re the mouthpieces of screenwriter Shapiro who isn’t nearly as clever as he thinks he is. Even comedies need to be more believable than this, the dialogue isn’t witty, it’s inorganic and clunky. I really didn’t get the film, I especially didn’t get the two main characters. The character played by Denzel Washington especially starts off in full-on trolling mode, so that what happens in the second half of the film just doesn’t jive with the first. Eventually Denzel gives a reason for his early behaviour and it makes sense, but it still doesn’t make the early scenes play any better in retrospect. It doesn’t play fair and is counter-productive, even though I understood the idea. Meanwhile, who gives a shit if Segal has a kid from a previous relationship? OK, the kid being African-American might’ve been a slight shock for say 1970, but 1981? Gimme a break, that seems outdated on arrival. Segal’s other secret seems a total head-scratcher, too. I can’t imagine it being terribly shocking, let alone something that would seem to outcast the Segal character from his fellow rich folk. George Segal’s character behaves irrationally hateful towards Denzel here. Yeah, the kid starts off as rather shady in his first scene (where he seems to be trolling Segal), but for the most part Denzel is a polite, well-meaning kid, and Segal hates him. It surely isn’t his race given he was in love with the kid’s mother, so what is it? Being hateful towards someone just because they’re inconveniencing their lavish lifestyle etc. just doesn’t come across as anywhere near enough motivation for me.

 

I suppose George Segal and Jack Warden are well cast here, but the normally lovely Susan Saint James is miserably cast. Big-screen debutant Denzel plays a character seemingly more geared towards a Meshach Taylor or Cleavon Little-type. I’ve never thought of Denzel as much of a comedy guy, and whilst not awful, he certainly doesn’t show much comic ability here. It’s not really his fault though, he’s not playing a flesh and blood character here. He’s playing a writer’s construct, a ‘streetwise black guy’ without much character depth beyond that. Looking very young for 27 (but still not convincingly teenaged), Denzel shows a bit of charisma here and there, but you’re not exactly seeing the future “Malcolm X” here or anything, and he’s certainly no Eddie Murphy either. In fact the only amusing bit in the whole film is when Segal attempts a basketball hustle only to learn that his son is a shit basketball player. Cue Bill Conti (“Rocky”) playing ‘Sweet Georgia Brown’ on the soundtrack.

 

This outdated racial comedy isn’t exactly bottom-of-the-barrel, but it’s totally forgettable and rather baffling. I didn’t get this. I didn’t understand any of it. I didn’t believe any of it. I didn’t like any of it. Let’s just forget the whole thing ever happened, OK? “Trading Places” it ain’t. Sorry, George. You will be greatly missed, but not for this.

 

Rating: D+