House Party

This had to be one of the funnier comedies of the early 1990's. It helped to create more positive images of young black teens rather than showing the more negative aspects. Most of the films about young blacks up until then had been about them either being in gangs or on drugs. At least in this film you see the kids getting into mischief without getting into any real trouble. However, the only negative thing I have to say about the film is not about the film itself, but about the seemingly endless series of sequels that seemed to follow. To me the only the first film should be seen and not the sequels because they pretty much undermined the quality of the first film. Also, the series almost seemed to become an African-American version of the "Beach Party" films, where there pretty much was no plot and just gave the actors an excuse to party. Other than that, this is still a good film.

Another note about this film. The thing that really stood out about the film was the performance of comedian Robin Harris as Kid's father. His performance pretty much helped to sell the film for me. Unfortunately, a few months after the film was released Harris died from an apparent heart attack at the much too young age of 36 and just as he was about to achieve stardom. So, this film, while enjoyable, is also a very bittersweet experience.