Soul Men

ReelViews James Berardinelli

There's nothing quite like watching Samuel L. Jackson and Bernie Mac performing at a hoedown and getting into it with the audience.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

This movie has a lot of good music in it, some on the soundtrack, some on the screen. Jackson and Bernie Mac have enormous fun doing intricate dance moves together.

The Hollywood Reporter Frank Scheck

This contemporary riff on "The Sunshine Boys" generally manages to succeed anyway, thanks to the entertaining performances by Mac and co-star Samuel L. Jackson and its generous doses of raucous humor and sweet soul music.

Variety Brian Lowry

There's a nice chemistry between Mac and Samuel L. Jackson in this latest variant of the road movie, which contains comedic elements but actually works better as a drama.

Village Voice Chuck Wilson

Mac and Jackson carry the show--particularly Mac, who's at his crackly, cranky best here. As swan songs go, Soul Men is pretty sweet.

Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips

The funniest bit in the crude but diverting Soul Men really makes you miss Bernie Mac, who died in August, a few months after completing the picture.

Philadelphia Inquirer David Hiltbrand

Jackson gets by mostly on bluster, but that doesn't matter because he serves mostly as a foil to Mac's popeyed shake-and-bake antics.

USA Today Claudia Puig

The material doesn't consistently do justice to their talents, but the movie is worth seeing for their chemistry and for the Motown-infused soundtrack.

Rolling Stone Peter Travers

Soul Men is a chance to salute these masters of mirth and music. Take it.

TV Guide Jason Buchanan

It's a joy to watch soul legend Isaac Hayes in one of his final roles.

Baltimore Sun Michael Sragow

Soul Men isn't much of a movie, but it bubbles along and reaches its percolating high point at the very end.

The New York Times A.O. Scott

A raucous, rambling comedy, offering some laughs, some groans and a feast for fans of the musical idioms it mocks and celebrates.

New York Daily News Elizabeth Weitzman

The script is basically a retread of every other AARP comedy, from "Grumpy Old Men" to "Wild Hogs." The laughs, in other words, are of the Viagra and kidney stone variety.

Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman

Soul Men could have done with less amped-up abrasiveness and more soft-shoe charm.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

The movie also qualifies as a kind of low-rent, male version of "Dreamgirls," but -- while many of the numbers are pleasant -- it doesn't have the moxie to work as a musical.

Boston Globe Wesley Morris

There are two reasons to put up with Soul Men, and that's the soul men themselves. Samuel L. Jackson and Bernie Mac appear to be having a good time, and for most of this raunchy, poorly orchestrated buddy comedy, that's enough.

Chicago Reader J.R. Jones

Mac was a magnetic performer with a long history of redeeming mediocre movies; unfortunately this is another one.

San Francisco Chronicle Mick LaSalle

Needless to say, Soul Men has a lot to overcome in its effort to be funny.

Washington Post Michael O'Sullivan

Misbegotten buddy-bonding comedy of errors.

Salon.com Stephanie Zacharek

Couldn't be more unhip -- it just never hits the groove.

Austin Chronicle Josh Rosenblatt

Whenever Soul Men is in need of a jolt of energy, these two poets of profanity are always ready with rapid-fire, mean-spirited rants that would make the writers of "Deadwood" blush.

New York Post Lou Lumenick

If you insist on seeing Soul Men, stick around during the closing credits for the best part of the movie, an interview with Mac.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Nathan Rabin

For all its crudeness and desperation, Soul Men can't scare up a single laugh.