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Boomerang

  • 1992
  • R
  • 1h 57m
IMDb RATING
5.6/10
33K
YOUR RATING
Eddie Murphy in Boomerang (1992)
Home Video Trailer from Paramount Home Entertainment
Play trailer2:55
4 Videos
41 Photos
Romantic ComedyComedyDramaRomance

A successful executive and womanizer finds his lifestyle choices have turned back on him when his new female boss turns out to be an even bigger deviant than he is.A successful executive and womanizer finds his lifestyle choices have turned back on him when his new female boss turns out to be an even bigger deviant than he is.A successful executive and womanizer finds his lifestyle choices have turned back on him when his new female boss turns out to be an even bigger deviant than he is.

  • Director
    • Reginald Hudlin
  • Writers
    • Barry W. Blaustein
    • David Sheffield
    • Eddie Murphy
  • Stars
    • Eddie Murphy
    • Robin Givens
    • Halle Berry
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    5.6/10
    33K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Reginald Hudlin
    • Writers
      • Barry W. Blaustein
      • David Sheffield
      • Eddie Murphy
    • Stars
      • Eddie Murphy
      • Robin Givens
      • Halle Berry
    • 80User reviews
    • 31Critic reviews
    • 45Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win & 8 nominations total

    Videos4

    Boomerang
    Trailer 2:55
    Boomerang
    Essential Black Films of the 1990s
    Clip 1:14
    Essential Black Films of the 1990s
    Essential Black Films of the 1990s
    Clip 1:14
    Essential Black Films of the 1990s
    Boomerang: Too Soon
    Clip 0:48
    Boomerang: Too Soon
    What Roles Has Halle Berry Turned Down?
    Video 4:04
    What Roles Has Halle Berry Turned Down?

    Photos41

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    + 35
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    Top cast59

    Edit
    Eddie Murphy
    Eddie Murphy
    • Marcus
    Robin Givens
    Robin Givens
    • Jacqueline
    Halle Berry
    Halle Berry
    • Angela
    David Alan Grier
    David Alan Grier
    • Gerard
    Martin Lawrence
    Martin Lawrence
    • Tyler
    Grace Jones
    Grace Jones
    • Strangé
    Geoffrey Holder
    Geoffrey Holder
    • Nelson
    Eartha Kitt
    Eartha Kitt
    • Lady Eloise
    Chris Rock
    Chris Rock
    • Bony T
    Tisha Campbell
    Tisha Campbell
    • Yvonne
    Lela Rochon
    Lela Rochon
    • Christie
    John Witherspoon
    John Witherspoon
    • Mr. Jackson
    Bebe Drake
    Bebe Drake
    • Mrs. Jackson
    • (as Bebe Drake-Massey)
    John Canada Terrell
    • Todd
    Leonard Jackson
    Leonard Jackson
    • Chemist
    Jonathan P. Hicks
    • Lady Eloise's Butler
    Tom Mardirosian
    Tom Mardirosian
    • Salesman
    Irv Dotten
    • Box Office Clerk
    • Director
      • Reginald Hudlin
    • Writers
      • Barry W. Blaustein
      • David Sheffield
      • Eddie Murphy
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews80

    5.632.7K
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    Featured reviews

    7xenazues

    I would love to leave a comment under some of these Negative Reviews!!!

    I can't quite understand how people left anything less than a 6 for a review for this movie. The only reason I say six is cause they do make jokes that are offensive to other cultures and genders so to speak. But other than that, it was quite funny. There definitely were some parts of the movie that people may not have appreciated. Some viewers really don't understand the whole 1988-1992 genre that seem to raise between decades and the start of one.

    That would definitely explain all the references to Africa that the students were doing. Back then Black People including hip hop was all about wearing African Medalians and so on. This movie was touching on that just a bit. I have to agree with one viewer. I was surprised when I found it it was an all black cast. I mean I remember the movie when it came out but it was never brought up much in that time its all black cast. Probably cause they thought that was something that was going to be normal.

    I watched this with my girlfriend who never heard or seen this movie and she loved it. The real funny part was Grace Jones. She was a little before my time in the early 80s so by 90s i saw a small glimpse of her. Definitely a raunchy movie but it was hilarious. Plus Im a sap for love stories. Plus I love how this made black women look. Powerful. Most movies to this day don't even do that.

    Id like to have a word with those people who gave it a 5 and really a word with those who gave it a 1. There is nothing bad about this movie. Definitely comedy. Plus its just a great sound track. Now if we as black people could get back to making this type of movies that would be nice. This movie is like a mix of working girl mixed with definitely maybe.
    Coxer99

    Boomerang

    A marketing executive quickly learns that what comes around, goes around when this Don Juan's new boss turns out to be a Don Juan-ita. Eddie Murphy gives the finest performance of his career as Marcus, a player who meets his match with Robin Givens, but finds love in Halle Berry. Murphy barely drops the F-bomb in the film and the character is well developed by Murphy himself, who had a hand in the writing credits for the film. A fun film that features a great supporting cast of David Allen Grier, Martin Lawrence and John Witherspoon.
    8ElMaruecan82

    After "Harlem Nights", another under-appreciated Eddie Murphy gem...

    First, let's credit "Boomerang" for what it is: an all-Black cast movie not centered on urban crime, drugs, racism, hood etc.

    This is not the first of its genre: Spike Lee built his reputation by portraying African-Americans in narrative realms outside the usual dictated tropes, but director Reginald Hudlin and writer Barry Blaustein went even further by exploring the world of glam, cosmetics agency, marketing, female power and reversed the roles with white people playing comic reliefs and women dominating men; it's "The Cosby Show" meeting "Working Girl". And from that starting point, it creates a whole new outlet for romantic comedies whose tropes were codified by Meg Ryan or Julia Roberts movies.

    And in this seemingly implausible world, Eddie Murphy plays Marcus, the smooth-talking womanizer who can get any girl. A lesser movie would've made him arrogant and detestable but Marcus plays in a whole other league, taking women as seriously as any part of his professional endeavor. His character-establishing moment occurs when he improvises a lost-dog scenario by buying a leash on the spot, Lela Ronchon falls in his trap. The trick could work by earning him a number but it works so well she gives hers. One ellipse takes us to him decorating his house with the cautiousness of a caterer and ignoring the insult of his neighbor (Tisha Campbell) who keeps warning new girlfriends about the predator.

    Yes, Marcus is always on the prowl but his perfectionism is rather impressive: he could have the girl in his bed but he plays it so smooth again he ends up in hers. Then a quick stare on her feet while she's sleeping reveals ugly soles calling for immediate dumping. This is neither a gag, nor a hint at a foot fetish but a revealer of the unconscious overlapping of his trade with his relationships. Indeed, advertisement is all about attentiveness to image or packaging, and so the man regards his preys as 'objects'. But take it for someone who worked in that racket, this is a woman's world, as image-awareness is largely considered a female trait, so for all his masculine act, Marcus got entrapped in the cult-of-image. It's an interesting comment on how image is a double-edged sword for both sexes, while more of a burden for women.

    The 'feet' aftermath is discussed with his two buddies Gerald (David Alan Grier) and Tyler (Martin Lawrence). They're outsiders who don't understand his reaction but then again he's the Alpha-male while Gerald pushes the platonic button so hard it always propels him into friend-zone and Tyler didn't have sex in the 90s (the film is from 1992). They're too admirative of Marcus to see the problem: being as much a sexual object as the women he objectifies. Later, he spends a night with the president of the agency Lady Eloise (Eartha Kitt) counting on a casting couch promotion. Kitt, 65, gives herself totally to the role and clap to turn off the lights before the rodeo starts, Marcus asks if it can be darker, the line isn't serious but reveals how seriously willing he is.

    But the promotion is given to Jacqueline, played by the breathtakingly sexy Robin Givens. What Marcus realizes, besides having been used as a sex toy, is that she's his boss, and she's out of the fooling-around zone. It's interesting to see that man whose reputation as a sex-collector makes mail guys bet on his next performances, becomes the subject of his own shenanigans. But Marcus smartly dodges the woman/man issue by inviting Jacqueline for dinner (after all, male colleagues would do that), the result is literally the sprinkler sprinkled. After all his efforts to cook a sumptuous dinner, all she wants is watching the Knicks. The scene is intercut with a cute dinner between Gerald and the new art-director Barbara (Halle Berry) and their interactions and clumsy, cute, genuine but somewhat authentic. The parallel between the two scenes highlights the position of Marcus, awkward only by the standards of usual rom-coms.

    That's how inventive and innovative the film is, showing a confident men getting a taste of his own medicine, which is the antidote to his toxic relationship with women. He's hit by the boomerang that puts his idea in the right place. And there's something about Murphy's performance: he doesn't overplay his laugh, when he's upset, he asks for the kind of respect women usually demand. The film is so effective in its comment on intersex relationships that the scene with the racist store owner feels too forced and could have been cut without hurting the rest.

    But there's more in "Boomerang". This is an adult movie that doesn't hide behind its comedic premise, there are soft-core elements making the relationships feel real. In your average rom-com, it's a passionate kiss and before you know it, the L-shaped bed, in "Boomerang" even the sex position or a climax become a grammar that verbalizes the statuses. And sexiness is also the source of hilarity, besides Eartha Kitt, there's Geoffrey Holder as Nelson the goofy video-maker, and there's Grace Jones as Strangé the French mascot for a new perfume, her scenes are so outrageous and over-the-top that I burst out laughing, from the 'stink so good' clip to the infamous restaurant scene, she takes movies to places you wouldn't suspect.

    Halle Berry brings such a sweet and lovable presence that it's a foregone conclusion she and Murphy will end together, though it's a little unfair for poor Gerald, but otherwise "Boomerang" hits everything right, it uses Murphy's usual persona for a story arc that ends up displaying more respect toward women and accepting that they too can have sexual appetites, in many aspects, the film is avant-guardist, bold and straightforward, and should have a higher reputation, because of its uniqueness.

    Indeed, I don't recall a movie like "Boomerang" before and after it, that's the mark of great films.
    brooksduane54

    Robin Givens is the highlight of a very funny and sexy film.

    The Eddie Murphy romantic/sex comedy "Boomerang" is, quite simply, a thorough and total joy. Murphy portrays longtime womanizer Marcus Graham with his usual charm and poise. Halle Berry is absolutely appealing and absolutely warm as the girl who prompts Marcus to clean up his horny act. Martin Lawrence and David Alan Grier provide ingratiating and stylish buddy-support. Lela Rochon and Eartha Kitt are, respectively, magnificently kittenish and magnificently cougar-ish as women with whom Marcus scores. Yet the film's greatest asset, its leading lure is Robin Givens's portrayal of Marcus's boss/female counterpart Jacqueline Broyer. She is by turns sexy and stylish, sultry and commanding, seductive and polished. We immediately see why Marcus falls under her spell and, when she dumps him, not only do we not turn against her, we admire her independent spirit and her no-bullshit attitude. Really and truly, by and of itself "Boomerang" is a sexy, charming, absolutely joyous romantic/sex farce; with Robin Givens on board, however, it achieves genuine cinematic greatness.
    8PersianPlaya408

    A great comedy which seemed to be one of the last good ones with Murphy

    Reginald Hudlins Boomerang is probably Eddie Murphy last good film to date. In this story of a marketing executive who is also a player. Murphy is great in this role, funny and full of hilarious one-liners. The film is written well, very funny, direction is decent and acting is good for the most part. Although Givens is not the best female lead, Halle Berry was great in her role. Martin Lawrence and Chris Rock were absolutely hilarious, and David Alan Grier was good as well. The film is not to be taken to seriously, and although not at the caliber of Murphy favs of mine "coming to America" and " beverly hills cop", Boomerang is still a must-see for any Eddie Murphy fan. 8/10

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      John Witherspoon's scenes were added after filming had wrapped. Eddie Murphy demanded that scenes with Witherspoon be added to the film. Witherspoon picked his outlandish wardrobe himself and improvised his lines.
    • Goofs
      Strangé goes back and forth from French to Italian.
    • Quotes

      Angela: What do you know about love? What could you possibly know about love? You know, I'm sick and tired of men using love as if it's some disease you just catch. Love should have brought your ass home last night.

    • Alternate versions
      Scene where Lady Eloise seduces Marcus after inviting him for dinner has been cut from TV version.
    • Connections
      Featured in Siskel & Ebert: Prelude to a Kiss/Universal Soldier/Boomerang/Wisecracks/The Best Intentions (1992)
    • Soundtracks
      Tonight Is Right
      by Kenneth 'Babyface' Edmonds (as Babyface), L.A. Reid and Daryl Simmons

      Performed by Keith Washington

      Produced by L.A. Reid & Kenneth 'Babyface' Edmonds (as Babyface) and Daryl Simmons

      Keith Washington performs courtesy of Qwest Records

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • July 1, 1992 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • French
    • Also known as
      • Бумеранг
    • Filming locations
      • Washington, District of Columbia, USA(The Bayou (club), exteriors)
    • Production companies
      • Paramount Pictures
      • Imagine Entertainment
      • Eddie Murphy Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $42,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $70,052,444
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $13,640,706
      • Jul 5, 1992
    • Gross worldwide
      • $131,052,444
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 57m(117 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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