They Cloned Tyrone film review
What do you get when you combine the sci-fi genre along with comedy and drama, and throw in the casting of John Boyega, Teyonah Parris and Oscar winner Jamie Foxx? In Juel Taylor’s directorial debut, They Cloned Tyrone, he’s crafted a modern blaxploitation film that is funny and entertaining, yet thought provoking enough that will stay with you after the credits roll.
When a drug dealer named Fontaine goes looking for money from a pimp named Slick Charles (Jamie Foxx), and gets shot and supposedly killed by a rival, things take a turn for the weird when he wakes up the next morning with no bullet holes in his body and no recollection to what happened the night before. When he refuses to believe Slick’s story that he was killed, local prostitute named Yo-Yo (Teyonah Parris) comes in the picture to confirm the shooting. As the trio set out to investigate what really happened, they quickly discovered that not only was Fontaine killed but cloned and that the whole Black community is part of a big government conspiracy that neither can understand.
Everything that each person does is being watched and heard, and if they are not with the program via manipulation or cloned, then they must be eliminated in order for this government test to continue. So, It’s up tp Fontaine, Yo-Yo and Slick to find the root of this conspiracy before it becomes a worldwide pandemic that neither can stop or survive.
Witten by Taylor and Tony Rettenmaier, topics ranging from politics, religion, and all that relates to the Black community are being discussed. Some can get lost with the Black culture jargon, but midway through the film anyone can get an idea to what’s happening. Beside the three leading stars, the film is complimented by a cast that includes J. Alphonse Nicholson, David Alan Grier, Trayce Malachi, Megan Sousa, Tamberla Perry, and Keifer Sutherland.
Having written Creed II, Space Jam: A New Legacy and Peacock’s Lebron James film Shooting Stars, with the Sundance film Young.Wild.Free soon to be released, Taylor is one of today’s rising stars in the script world. There’s a vested interest in his work and with this directorial debut, he’s proven that he can do more than just write.
While Boyega and Parris bring in the drama, leave it to Foxx to bring back his comedic game back on the screen and have you entertained. There’s a bit of Boyega’s Moses character from his breakout film Attack The Block in Fontaine. He’s a leader and ready to take charge when push comes to charge. Parris is just as good as her male leads. She’s sassy, and can
If one knows Foxx’s career, he started out as a comedian long before he won the Oscar and ventured into producing, singing and other areas. In Tyrone, his funny bones have been awakened.
This film delivers as much entertainment as you can expect when you have good talent in front and behind the scene.