Eddie Murphy missed the boat. What could have been a legitimately funny movie about Norbit and his way-overweight spouse, Rasputia, ended up as a profanity-laden film which included cheating by both spouses. At one point in the movie, Deion Hughes (Cuba Gooding Jr.) is sharing vows with his wife-to-be, Kate (Thandie Newton), whom he is marrying for her money, when interruptions of the ceremony abound. In frustration the minister (Richard Gant), let’s out a “For Chr*st’s sake,” in church. A man sitting, watching the ceremony, opens his bottle and begins to suck down some alcohol. The language was much stronger than I anticipated. There is also total rear male nudity in the film, and a Biblical reference about “turning the other cheek.”

The film does have some funny moments, as watching the huge Rasputia try to get in cars and slide down a waterslide is quite comical. One joke about blacks and Jews may upset some people although mostly everyone at the screening I attended took it good naturedly and laughed. As for being a family film, the cheating of the main couple in the film, along with many sexual innuendos, in addition to the very strong language, prevents this one from being Dove approved. We hope that the filmmakers eventually realize that taking the Lord’s name in vain in church, or anywhere, is not what much of our mainstream audience desires to hear.