By Christian Eltell
Written and Published on June 30, 2021
Critic Rating: 3.5/4 Stars
Special 33rd Anniversary Review
-Prince Akeem (Eddie Murphy) sings out loud with joy after his date with Lisa, the woman he loves, in this sweet and funny scene.
What does it take to find the person you love? Are two people meant to love each other in terms of social or economic status? These are the concepts that Eddie Murphy’s protagonist, Prince Akeem, must contemplate in his quest to find his bride in the 1988 romantic comedy, Coming to America.
Akeem is the Prince of Zamunda, a beautiful African country in which everyone is wealthy and elegantly dressed. The kingdom also includes elephants and big trees. The palace is grand and luxurious, with maids and servants who attend to Prince Akeem in everything he does, including bathing and dressing him in royal clothing.
While Akeem appreciates his family, his home, and his royal status, he tells his father, King Jaffe (the mighty James Earl Jones), that for once he wants the freedom to do things by himself. This includes finding the bride he believes is right for him. Akeem wants to marry a woman who will love him as a normal human being, not as a rich prince. He would also love a woman who is intelligent, strong, and makes her own decisions.
While Jaffe wants Akeem to marry Imani Izzi, a woman who would only mindlessly do what Akeem commands, the ambitious prince decides to search for his bride in America (specifically, and conveniently, Queens, New York), with right-hand man Semmi (Arsenio Hall) by his side.
Unlike the elegance of Zamunda, we quickly see the rugged streets in Queens, as well as the beat-up apartment building in Astoria run by the landlord (hilariously played with snottiness by Frankie Faison).
Semmi is immediately disappointed by everything in Queens, from the apartment he and Akeem stay in, to working as a custodian at the fast food restaurant McDowell’s (not McDonald’s). Meanwhile, Akeem appreciates doing hard labor and living on his own like a regular person, without the help of servants.
Akeem and Semmi work at McDowell’s, taking out the garbage and mopping floors, in order for Akeem to get the attention of Lisa (the sweet Shari Headley), daughter of head manager Cleo McDowell (John Amos), after Akeem notices Lisa at a pageant event.
Akeem and Lisa have instant chemistry, as well as a nice date together, even though the prince hasn’t revealed his true identity to her. Lisa is similar to Akeem in the sense that she’s also very close with her overprotective father, who wants her to marry a wealthy man so that she won’t struggle in life. However, like Akeem, Lisa wants to have a social and intimate connection with someone without caring about how much money he has or where he lives.
This film is very much up there with Eddie Murphy’s best, including 48 Hrs. and Beverly Hills Cop. His performance as Prince Akeem is both comical and charming, as well as humble and understanding in terms of what he wants to accomplish in his life, and who he wants to be with.
Murphy also has hilarious alternate roles as Clarence (owner and lead barber of the My T Sharp barbershop in Queens), Saul (a guy with a nice suit and hat who hangs out at the barbershop), and Randy Watson (the crazy curly-haired singer who performs at the Miss Black Awareness Pageant). These characters provide plenty of comic relief. Clarence talks fast, Saul calls Akeem “Kunta Kinte” (the character from the Roots series), and Randy is a wild performer with plenty of style.
Arsenio Hall’s Semmi is at his funniest when he is upset over Akeem’s plan to win Lisa over. He hates living in a poor apartment and doing hard labor at McDowell’s, referring to himself as a peasant, which sounds selfish considering his wealthy lifestyle in Zamunda. Other funny scenes include a moment in which he tries to figure out how much money to request from King Jaffe on a telegram, his screaming reaction when the king arrives in Queens, and when he lies to Lisa’s sister, Patrice, by saying that he is the prince and Akeem is his servant.
Arsenio also plays Morris (another barber who enjoys arguing with Clarence about women and boxing), Extremely Ugly Girl (who uncomfortably flirts with Akeem and Semmi at a nightclub), and Reverend Brown (who, like Randy, acts nuts, especially towards the women, on stage during the pageant).
As Lisa, Shari Headley is sweet and confident, while Patrice (Allison Dean) is the jealous sister (“how come she always gets the good ones?!”). John Amos’s Cleo McDowell nearly steals the film during the climax when he finds out that Akeem is a prince, and is suddenly so excited and nice to him. However, when King Jaffe tries to pay Cleo so that Lisa doesn’t see Akeem anymore, Cleo feels insulted that the king believes he can pay millions to buy his daughter off. The climax is the best scene in the film, signifying the social and economic division between the upper-class family of King Jaffe and Cleo’s middle-class household.
Coming to America is a terrific romantic comedy that questions the significance of love, with Eddie Murphy leading a hilarious cast that perfectly holds the film together. Now:
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