Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Paul Bates | ... | Oha | |
Eddie Murphy | ... | Prince Akeem / Clarence / Saul / Randy Watson | |
Garcelle Beauvais | ... | Rose Bearer | |
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Feather | ... | Rose Bearer |
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Stephanie Simon | ... | Rose Bearer |
Victoria Dillard | ... | Bather / Dancer | |
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Felicia Taylor | ... | Bather |
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Midori | ... | Bather (as Michele Watley) |
James Earl Jones | ... | King Jaffe Joffer | |
Madge Sinclair | ... | Queen Aoleon | |
Sheila Johnson | ... | Lady-in-Waiting | |
Arsenio Hall | ... | Semmi / Morris / Extremely Ugly Girl / Reverend Brown | |
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Raymond D. Turner | ... | T-Shirt Hawker |
Calvin Lockhart | ... | Colonel Izzi | |
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Billi Gordon | ... | Large Woman |
Immersed in luxury and riches, the courteous blue blood and refined heir apparent to Africa's prosperous kingdom of Zamunda, Prince Akeem, summons up the courage to reject an arranged marriage proposal on his twenty-first birthday. Bent on finding true love, the young aristocrat along with his trusted valet, Semmi, find themselves in the strange and unknown urban jungle of New York City's Queens, trying to mingle with their neighbours by posing as humble exchange students. More than anything in the world, the noble prince yearns to be loved for what he is, and not for his title; however, can he find his soulmate in the bustling Big Apple? Written by Nick Riganas
The first part of this movie, showing Eddie Murphy's life as an African prince, is one of the funniest things I have ever seen. I loved it. The wedding ceremony alone was so funny, I almost fell out of my chair from laughing so hard. I thought this could be one of the funniest movies of all time.
At about the halfway point, though, it stops being a laugh-a-minute riot, and kind of settles down into more of a quiet romance movie. The scene at the basketball game (with the man who worships Murphy) is the last really hilarious thing that happens. After that, it never again reaches the energy of the beginning.
This is not really a bad thing, though: it is still enjoyable from start to finish, even during the quiet parts. It has good actors, and it is fun to watch, and that makes it a great movie. I highly recommend it; it is one of my favorite comedies. I give it 8 out of 10 stars. See it if you haven't.