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Men have their bitch sessions. Now women,
that may be sort of a shocker for you to comprehend, but damn it, it’s
true. Men bitch, and they bitch a lot. And given free time and no job,
we’ll bitch all day long. Hispanics, for instance, bitch in the kitchens
of their homes, day in and day out. “Business Johnson,” a small scene
from a larger script from director Frank and Raine, features a genuine
bitch session between a group of African American men on their porch one
afternoon. Now, I’ll admit this, I loved “Business Johnson,” because
it’s so goddamn true to life, regardless of what race we set down on.
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Given a few beers and enough
time, men will bitch for as long as humanly possible about
any old shit. I’ve been apart of these sessions more times
than I’d like to admit, and the actors here have such a
natural chemistry with one another, that you’re immediately
sucked in the second we pan out from actor Jerod Mixon’s
roaring mouth, setting down on this group of young men
discussing an utterly hilarious story of a man with one ear.
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But then, Raine and Frank decide to make an
unusual move, and surprise us with an ending that’s somewhat thought
provoking. And we’re then left wondering, are these men on their time
off, or just lazy slobs doing what they do every single day? We have to
wonder. “Business Johnson” has such an energy to it, and it’s utterly
compelling to hear them giggle, and laugh, and roar from a story that’s
really only a rehash of an old joke. I couldn’t understand it, but I
enjoyed the hell out of this.
Raine and Frank’s film deserves a wider
running time of at least an hour. Because what they do is set up
genuinely interesting characters that we could either end up loving or
hating, and I was anxious to learn more about their situation, and who
exactly Business Johnson was in the first place. Raine and Frank’s film
doesn’t feel unresolved, it just left me wanting much more extrapolation
and emphases on this scenario, and I’m aching for a longer running time
for a deeper focus.
I want more damn it! But alas, I'll just have to live with "Business
Johnson" and its short run time, because it's so damn funny. I had a
blast in its fleeting run time, because of the entertaining
performances, tight direction, and provoking climax.
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