It has been awhile since we have seen the Barbershop crew, and thankfully Ice Cube, Cedric The Entertainer, and company had sense enough to bring us another installment of this beloved franchise. Yep, Calvin, Eddie, Shelly (Eve), Jimmy (Sean Patrick Thomas), and JD (Anthony Anderson) are back with new loves, new friends, no co-workers, and teenage kids to deal with. Calvin’s barbershop has managed to survive the wave of new businesses that pushed out many others in his neighborhood by taking on a business partner, Angie.
His son, Jalen (Michael Rainey, Jr.), is now a teenager and attends school with the son of Shelly’s husband, Rashad, also a fellow barber in the shop. The shop’s peace is short lived as the crime and violence of Chicago pervades the lives of everyone there. Jalen too finds himself on the opposite of the law as he pressured to join a local gang. Calvin must choose between keeping the barbershop he owns and loves and doing what is best for his son by moving to a better neighborhood in
This movie did not stop with the laughs or the star power. It was chalked full of comedians like J.B. Smoove (One-Stop), Lamorne Morris (Jerrod), Utkarsh Ambudkar (Raja), and Deon Cole (Dante). They definitely did not stop with the laughs, going in on everyone, especially Kim Kardashian, Kanye West, and Caitlyn Jenner! These people made the movie and were welcomed additions. Honestly you don’t miss much of the original cast at all. Besides the comedians you have Common and Nicki Minaj in major roles, and an appearance by Draya Michele!
Still the true heart of the film centers around the lesson of life and communal responsibility. There is a real crime problem in Chicago where hundreds of people are murdered every year. Besides this wanton and senseless murders, there is police corruption and wickedness in high places. #BlackLivesMatter and this film said that from a fatherly stance. Be sure you check out Barbershop: The Next Cut for laughs and love at a theater near you. You won’t be disappointed!
