Aspiring actor and hot-dog stand employee Bobby Taylor catches the ire of his grandmother for auditioning for a role in the regrettably titled exploitation film "Jivetime Jimmy's Revenge." When Tinseltown Studios casts Taylor in the title role, he has a series of conflicted dreams satirizing African-American stereotypes in Hollywood, and must reconcile his career goals with his desire to remain a positive role model for his little brother.
For a mere $100,000, Townsend and company have made a funny, poignant and technically proficient film -- one that should thoroughly embarrass those studios that routinely offer up badly made, multimillion-dollar disasters.
– Richard Harrington,
Washington Post,
1 Jan 2000
fresh:
Mr. Townsend has taken aim at the industry's funny bone and struck a solid blow.
– Janet Maslin,
New York Times,
20 May 2003
fresh:
Despite the film's conspicuously minuscule budget and shaky narrative structure, it is funny. If you value enthusiasm and imagination more than glossy sophistication, you'll laugh.
– Geoff Andrew,
Time Out,
9 Feb 2006
fresh:
Improv talent Robert Townsend is pretty much the whole show.
– Pat Graham,
Chicago Reader,
18 Mar 2008
rotten:
Brimming with imagination and energy, Hollywood Shuffle is the kind of shoestring effort more appealing in theory than execution.