'Coffee & Kareem' Review: Raunchy comedy is homophobic and doesn't even try hard enough to rise above average
Spoilers for Netflix's 'Coffee & Kareem'
There is absolutely no beating around the bush in this. The first thing you note about Netflix's raunchy buddy comedy 'Coffee & Kareem' is the foul-mouthed teenager Kareem (Terrence Little Gardenhigh). Strong-headed, loud and fearless, 12-year-old Kareem has just found out that his mother Vanessa Manning (Taraji P Henson) is dating Detroit police officer James Coffee (Ed Helms).
Completely against the relationship, Kareem's main agenda is to break them up. How? By bribing some criminals to scare Coffee off. Unknowingly, he stumbles upon the same fugitive who had fled from Coffee's holds, Orlando (RonReaco Lee).
Coffee, at first, is a seemingly incompetent cop. He is pushed around by not only his superiors but also the entire police department. His boss, Officer Watts (Betty Gilpin), is abusive towards him, hurling obscenities the second she sees his face. After he lets Orlando go, Coffee is shifted to control traffic.
Despite the professional demotion, the police officer tries to connect with Kareem.
'Coffee & Kareem' has a decent start as both Coffee and Kareem begin spending more time together to get to know each other — well, Coffee is spending more time to get to know his girlfriend's son, who is actually plotting to end their relationship.
Soon the two protagonists find themselves in some deep mess. After they discover that there are dirty cops in the department, Coffee and Kareem set out together to fight for justice — running against time to save Vanessa and acquit Coffee of the false charges pressed against him.
However, the good going halts soon as it introduces explicit homophobia in its plot. Early on in their bonding sessions, Kareem is explaining to Coffee why he doesn't get picked on despite having "42 % body fat". The idea is to shout back explicit homophobic threats aggressively — "be gay and aggressive".
This technique is emulated by Coffee later in the movie when he is threatening Orlando to join his side. This is a second-hand cringe moment as Ed Helms, rather uncomfortably, threatens Orlando with the different stages of a homosexual relationship, aggressively.
It is easy to ignore it? No. Do the makers want us to ignore it? Also, no.
'Coffee & Kareem' almost breaking apart. However, it is saved from completely falling apart by Terrence Little Gardenhigh. The young boy is dynamic in his portrayal of the foul-mouthed, problematic Kareem — a perfect fit for the raving energy of Taraji P. Henson.
The movie just turns chaotic towards the end — a loud mess of explosions, fire and mangled body parts becoming a mere addition to the library of cop comedies — barely trying enough to challenge the standard. Directed by Michael Dowse, 'Coffee & Kareem' is a lazy Sunday watch. It is unfair to expect it to do better because it didn't try hard in the first place.
'Coffee & Kareem' is now streaming on Netflix.
