On this day in comedy on July 28th, The Nutty Professor II: The Klumps was released by Universal Pictures.
This Eddie Murphy vehicle is a sequel to the 1996 film, The Nutty Professor, which was a remake of the 1963 Jerry Lewis film of the same name. In this edition Sherman Klump (Murphy in make-up) is a genius still, but we get to spend more time with his family who are not. However they are all played brilliantly by Murphy, who also plays Sherman’s alter ego, Buddy Love (Murphy without make-up).
The plot has Sherman discovering a formula for the fountain of youth. To complicate things, Buddy Love steals it and tries to sell it. Through DNA extraction Sherman is losing his brain cells and Buddy is on the loose as a separate entity from Sherman. With help from his assistant and his fiancé, played by Janet Jackson, Sherman regains his brain cells and dispenses with Buddy Love.
Eddie Murphy played 8 roles in this film. Comedians, Wanda Sykes, Larry Miller and Chris Elliot are featured as well as Richard Gant, Anna Marie Horford, Freda Payne and Jamal Mixon. Though most critics panned the film for what they considered gross and lowbrow comedy, they overall praised Murphy for his versatility and talent. Critic legend, Roger Ebert, on the other hand, loved it – calling it “very funny” and “nothing less than amazing”. Obviously many ticket buyers felt the same way.
On a budget of 84 million, The Nutty Professor 2: The Klumps grossed 123.3 million domestically and 43 million abroad.
By Darryl “D’Militant” Littleton
