Mo'nique Movies
The career of funny-girl Mo'nique began in her early 20s, when she took to the improv comedy stage on a dare from her brother. The impulsive decision met with success, and she began to pursue a career in stand-up comedy, eventually performing on such renowned shows as Def Comedy Jam, Showtime at the Apollo, and Snaps.Mo'nique's big break came in 1999, when she landed her own sitcom, starring on UPN's The Parkers as a single mom attending college alongside her daughter. She was 32 years old, and the days when she was working at the phone company in her home town of Baltimore were about to seem very far away. The critical and commercial success of The Parkers led to a slew of awards and movie roles, including Two Can Play That Game, Baby Boy, Half Past Dead, Shadowboxer, Domino, and Soul Plane.
Despite having her pick of scripted roles, Mo'nique was still itching to get back to her stand-up roots. She joined Adele Givens, Sommore, and Laura Hayes for a hugely successful comedy tour called The Queens of Comedy, which was captured on film and released by Paramount Home Entertainment and the Showtime network in 2002.
Never shying away from her status as a full-figured woman, Mo'nique has used her notoriety and her famously sarcastic wit in order to advocate for voluptuous women everywhere. Her funny and empowering book Skinny Women are Evil became a best seller in 2003, and she soon afterward began working with the Oxygen network on a beauty pageant for full-figured women called F.A.T. Chance-an acronym for Fabulous and Thick. She also starred in the movie Phat Girlz in 2006, playing a struggling fashion designer looking for love and success in a world of "hot bodies." Later that same year the large and in-charge star could be seen on screen with the Broken Lizard comedy troupe in the alcohol-chugging chuckler Beerfest. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide
- 2002
Some of America's best urban comics have appeared on BET's standup showcase ComicView, and this home video collection brings together some of the show's all-time funniest moments. On BET ComicView: All Stars, Vol. 2, Arnez J plays host to such laugh merchants as Rickey Smiley, Sommore, Mo'nique, and many more. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Action hero Steven Seagal goes behind bars -- though don't worry, he isn't really a bad guy -- in this action thriller. Sascha Petrosevitch (Seagal) is an FBI agent working undercover to infiltrate a gangland kingpin's operations. While Petrosevitch is able to gain the trust of one of the gangster's lieutenants, Nick Frazier (Ja Rule), things go haywire during an FBI raid, and Petrosevitch takes several slugs in the back as he struggles to maintain his cover. Eight months later, Petrosevitch and Frazier are serving time together in the newly refurbished Alcatraz Penitentiary, as Petrosevitch secretly continues his investigation. Prison warden Hubbard (Stephen J. Cannell) is arranging for the execution of convicted killer and thief Lester (Bruce Weitz), and U.S. Supreme Court justice Jane McPherson (Linda Thorson) has announced she will attend as a witness. But Hubbard's assistant Donny (Morris Chestnut) has devised a secret plan -- it seems Lester stole and stashed away 200 million dollars in gold before he was arrested, and Donny, along with an underground SWAT team, takes control of the prison and takes Hubbard, McPherson, and the other assembled dignitaries hostage, demanding to be told where Lester has hidden his fortune. Now Petrosevitch must drop his cover and persuade his allies within the prison -- including Frazier and Little Joe (Michael "Bear" Taliferro) -- to join him in a desperate bid to foil Donny and free the hostages. Half Past Dead also features Nia Peeples, Kurupt, Tony Plana, and Claudia Christian. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steven Seagal, Morris Chestnut, (more)
Ten years later, writer and director John Singleton returns to the South Central Los Angeles neighborhoods of his debut film Boyz 'N the Hood (1991). Tyrese Gibson stars as Jody, a jobless 20-year-old African-American man who has fathered two children by two different women, Yvette (Taraji P. Henson) and Peanut (Tamara LaSeon Bass), although he still lives with his 36-year-old mother Juanita (Adrienne-Joi Johnson). As Jody grapples with the increasing pressures of adult responsibility, he also contends with his troubled best friend Sweetpea (Omar Gooding) and new adversary Rodney (Snoop Doggy Dogg). Then there's his mother's live-in boyfriend Marvin (Ving Rhames), a reformed gangsta who agrees with Juanita that her son should grow up, move out, and move on. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tyrese Gibson, Omar Gooding, (more)
Love really is a battlefield in this war of the sexes comedy that marks the directorial debut of Def Jam's How to Be a Player (1997) screenwriter Mark Brown. Vivica A. Fox stars as Shante, a knowledgeable veteran of the dating game who thinks she's found the perfect mate in the handsome Keith (Morris Chestnut). When Keith is spotted stepping out with Shante's arch-rival Conny (Gabrielle Union), the spurned lover institutes what she labels the "ten-day plan," an all-out assault on Keith designed to make him come crawling back to her. Shante's scheme includes sexy lingerie, home cooking, aloofness, and other tactics intended to make Keith regret his errant ways, but Keith is receiving contradictory advice from his allegedly worldly wise buddy Tony (Anthony Anderson). Two Can Play That Game is produced by Doug McHenry, director of Jason's Lyric (1994) and Kingdom Come (2001). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vivica A. Fox, Lee Anthony, (more)
Four of today's hottest black comedians headline this Queens of Comedy video special, a follow-up to Spike Lee's The Original Kings of Comedy film (although Lee does not direct here). Adele Givens, Mo'Nique (from UPN's The Parkers), Sommore, and Laura Hayes (from BET's Comic View) present a very provocative adult program with riffs on everything from the size of various body parts, to the habits of men, to former president Bill Clinton. ~ Jessica Frost, All Movie Guide
Noted hip-hop producer DJ Pooh, who co-wrote the urban comedy Friday, makes his directorial debut with this comedy-drama. A young African-American man is enjoying his freedom after his second stretch in prison. Under the "three strikes and you're out" law, another brush with the police could mean life behind bars, so he's determined to stay out of trouble. He quickly learns, however, that trouble has a way of finding him, no matter where he goes. DJ Pooh also stars in 3 Strikes, alongside N'Bushe Wright and Brian Hooks. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Brian Hooks, N'Bushe Wright, (more)
