Norbit

It can8217;t be fun writing and doing Eddie Murphy plus Eddie Murphy plus Eddie Murphy, all the time 8212; this time he is an Ugly Black Man, a Fat Black Woman and a Chinese. It is showing, particularly when all the audience is wishing is to see more of Thandie Newton.

Murphy is funny but, increasingly, he isn8217;t that funny. The jokes are stale, and the story about a man trapped in a loveless marriage with a monstrous fat woman and wanting his beautiful childhood sweetheart isn8217;t original except in ways to make the Fat Woman look even more unlikable. Only the Chinaman gets a few laughs, for the sheer irreverence with which Murphy treats the character 8212; no pussyfooting around a 8220;minority community8221;.

If you really want to cry for someone, do it for Newton. A beautiful and talented actress, one hopes she did this film because she really, really likes Murphy. The truth, more likely, is different: being Black, there are not a lot of options for her out there.

So is Murphy, nominated just this year for an Oscar for Dreamgirls, making up for lost opportunities? Now that8217;s another story.