User reviews

"Woo" is about a woman (named, of all things, Woo!) who goes on a blind date with a guy who hasn't been with a woman in a long time. Woo has been through a lot with men and gets the feeling this new guy just wants one thing, so she leads him on a series of late-night adventures a la Scorsese's "After Hours." This movie is L-A-M-E lame. It's packed with all sorts of awful dialogue, poor performances, racial stereotypes (including the big fat black woman who waves her finger at everyone and finishes every sentence with the word "girlfriend") and so on and so forth.

Nowadays it's best remembered for starring Jada Pinkett (Smith), wife of Will Smith. Her performance isn't that good and it's hard to believe they based an entire movie -- including the TITLE! -- on her character.

Overall this is poor, stupid, (intellectually) offensive and insulting, clichéd, stereotypical and worse than all that: uninteresting! It's not entertaining, it's not funny, it's just dumb and annoying.

Not even worth watching on TV.

"Woo" has a fine cast. Jada Pinkett has great charisma. Tommy Davidson is a fine comic actor, though he isn't too convincing as a straight-arrow law student. The film is written in sitcom format. The film consists of one implausible scene of conflict after another (especially at the Italian restaurant), desperate to find a punchline. Some of the scenes work. I thought the scene at the transvestite bar was hilarious. And I liked the little cameo by Billy Dee. That gave the film a touch of class. It's too bad LL Cool J only had one scene. I liked his smooth "mack daddy" character. But with a film like this, even though it's a comedy, your disbelief elevates by the minute and it just doesn't have a natural, character-driven flow. It forces itself upon the audience. And the third act is predictable and unconvincing. This is a film that could've been more than OK, if it had a little more wit and focus. If this is about a 1 or 2 dollar rental at your local video store--this is not a bad film to rent. Otherwise, I wouldn't recommend this one.

Tim is a shy man who hasn't been with a woman in quite a while. Woo is a woman who is looking for her perfect man but has been played once too often. When a friend hooks them both up on a date things go wrong from the start when Woo feels that Tim is only after one thing. After that she drags him through a series of misadventures as he gradually loses patience.

I must admit to have taped this because of the presence of the lovely Jada Pinkett Smith. Ironically I watched this on the day that The Matrix Reloaded opened in the UK – I wonder will she be boasting about her presence in this film now that she has real hits under her belt. The plot here is almost an `urban' rehash of Blind Date, with Woo leading the mild mannered Tim to despair. However the majority of the film is poor and not very funny. The plot is very thin, so thin that it needs separate little subplots for the other characters just to sustain the running time. Sadly neither of the two `friends' subplots are any good at all and are either stupid or obvious.

The main `romance' between Woo and Tim is badly translated. At no time did you wish for these two to be a couple, even the `slow music during a thoughtful taxi ride' moment seemed to come out of nowhere and indicate that the film would be ended soon. To be honest other than Woo's body I could see no reason any man would want to be with her – certainly Tim could do a lot better, which kinda goes against the point of the film. Their episodic adventures raised a few small laughs for me but not enough to justify the time.

Pinkett-Smith is OK. Her looks are spoilt by a lipstick colour that doesn't suit her face and a general attitude that alienated her from an audience that she needed to keep. Davidson is better despite playing the same sort of character as he did in Booty Call, he has more of a knack for comedy and his character was easier to emphasis with than Woo. The support cast are all pretty poor whether it is Chappelle demanding his wife dress as a `chicken ho' or Martin, Heath etc being `dogs'. Cameos from LL Cool J and Foxy Brown do nothing to liven it up.

Overall I am not against urban comedies although many of them do tend to fall into lazy cliché that would border on the racist were they not produced for the very groups they stereotype. Here I had low expectations but was still let down., Very few laughs, very basic plotting and such poor characterisation that it was hard to like anyone in the film. Best avoided and very probably being tippexed off Pinkett-Smith's CV as I type this.

I should have known that this film wasn't going to be any good; the director made another film by the name of 'The Guru' which has the 'honour' of being the only film that I've ever rated lower than 4/10(!) The thing is with this film is that most of the time, you're laughing at it, instead of with it. Some typical examples of this are occurrences when the main character's friends, or indeed, any characters for that matter, talk in the way that they do. You'll instantly recognise the style; the typical 'gangster' accent which is actually more amusing than a lot of the jokes. Given the fact this film is made up of an entirely black cast, this method of delivering the dialogue is constant throughout and is, in my opinion, very annoying after a while. It's not 'Chris Tucker' annoying but it grates in its own way.

This film's setting takes a bit of a 'road movie' approach as it never lingers for too long in a certain place or setting, or at least that's how these single route journey's in film SHOULD take place. In 'Woo', the place of no return they set off from (the guy's apartment) right the way through to the final scene is crammed with ridiculous scenes in pretty generic settings and the frustrating thing is, is that they last for far too long and are far too unfunny to be appearing in a film which is listed under the comedy genre.

Incidences here include the farce that happens in an Italian restaurant, a rather pointless and unfunny scene in the next setting: a secret underground club which has the ability to hide its loud music RIGHT until you get up close and open the final door and also in a police station during which I can't even remember one joke. Other frustrating things include the use of slapstick early on and a rather irrelevant scene involving LL Cool J, whom the protagonist goes to visit for advice on: wait for it…..music(!) I think LL Cool J appears rather early/high up in the pre film credits yet lasts for about four minutes. Yes, it's ridiculous.

Romance? Yes. Drama? Probably. Comedy? Erm: No Chance. One moment in this film made me laugh and that was when a character went to switch off his car alarm, only to find the car gone and the alarm lying there, still in perfect working order. That's not enough, I'm afraid.

The premise of WOO centers around a mismatched couple who meet via a blind date . The eponymous Woo turns up at the flat of Tim who is a bit of nerd and a complete contrast to Woo . Right away you realise that this isn't a groundbreaking sex comedy and perhaps needed something to set it apart from other movies in the sub genre and there's nothing here that does

But what really ruins the film is the ethnic stereotypes and I don't think I've seen so many unlikely characters since watching black exploitation movies like SHAFT and Hit-man . The audience are really smacked over the head as to just how funky these black people are which will probably cause offence to black people and white liberals and will certainly irritate everyone else , so from having a movie that from the outset would merely have been very run of the mill we have a movie that is embarrassing . If you're going to populate a film with black people at least give them non stereotypical quirks

Obviously a starring vehicle for Jada Pinkett Smith who had already co-starred quite effectively in Set It Off and The Nutty Professor.

But where I knew her first and most fondly from at that time, was Tales From The Crypt: Demon Knight.

She was sensational in that movie. And sexy as all get out too.

I just loved her there.

Now, we know more about her once seemingly perfect all star marriage than her actual work.

Which brings me to the set of this film.

Or off it.

We learned this year from Shannon Sharpe's podcast, that Will Smith tried to bully and intimidate her costar, the immensely talented and legendary Tommy Davidson, who himself, had already starred in the much funnier and superior, iconic In Living Color and Booty Call by the time this movie was released.

The cast here is incredible: Dave Chapelle, LL Cool J, and Paula Jai Parker among others.

The soundtrack is awesome too.

It's just that the movie is not.

It's not funny and not believable.

Jada Pickett Smith again looks completely amazing.

Wow.

But her character is just too obnoxious.

There's no way anybody puts up with that.

I don't care how fine she is.

And she is fine.

But this movie is not.

Watch any of those three previous films I mentioned if you're looking for your prime JPS fix, because this ain't it.

Ouch! This movie hurt too much to watch... What were the stars thinking when they signed on to this movie? The film was predictable, slow, and often tasteless. Probably the funniest scene in the entire movie takes place in a drag club. Now what does that tell you?

Though the film had some predictable moments, overall it was entertaining to say the least. The scence with the She males was just plain hilarious!!!! Moreover, the park scene had some funny lines. Romaine's "Damn baby let me suck the left one and make the right one jealous", had me rolling on the floor. Dave Chappelle and LL Cool J had limited participation, but brought good aspects to the film. Overall, there have been some horrible films produced by Hollywood, this wasn't one of them. So final opinion, light hearted, mixed with some sparse witty dialog made it a worth while film. Tommy Davidson, not the funniest person I've seen on the screen didn't do that bad of a job.

So a psychic predicts that "Woo" is going to have a good-hearted man for the hot night, right? Well, Jason predicts that you're not going to get a single laugh nor thrill from this wasted, inept, trashy, short urban comedy where there are plenty more apartment buildings and nightclubs to shoot a picture. Ms. Smith is one good actress they've wasted there, but rest assured that all of the acting (as well as the diversion) is to blame. Forget a "one-star" review, or even a halfsie; this one is absolutely, positively REJECTED.

I think "Woo" was a very interesting movie and featured very good performances by Jada Pinkett Smith and Tommy Davidson. Plus, new-comer Foxy Brown made her acting debut worth the wait. "Woo" is a good movie to watch on a Friday night, and is guaranteed to make you laugh a few times.

Well. Whoever the *beep* you are, you don't know what you're talking about. "Woo" may not be the best movie in the world, but it was not "awful" as you so rudely stated it to be. It has comedy, it's fun, it's feel good. Let me ask you a question...are you African American? If you are not that would explain why you didn't enjoy the movie. I'm not being racist hopefully, I'm just saying that black people are not huge critics on films. They just lay back, and enjoy. Tommy Lee Davidson's role was kind of boring...but Jada was funny, and sexy, and very entertaining, including the random people (lady ordering the drinks, and Pookee!) Point....Be quiet if you don't know what you're talking about.

NOW WHAT!?!?!?

My friends all tell me that I'm not mean enough in my movie reviews, and they probably have a point. See, I love, love, love movies and can usually find something redeemable in even the most pitiful dreck that's out there. But wait- I think they're gonna be real proud of me. Here goes... A: charmless B: aimless C: pointless D: endless E: all of the above OK, which of the above letters best describes Woo? If you said E, all of the above, you're correct!! Oh, by the way, on the Corkymeter, that means 0 stars out of five. Gosh, that was tough. My friends are gonna be so proud...

I had the displeasure of seeing this movie last night. It was on one of the HBOs and it was one of those movies that is so bad, you can't stop watching. Afterwards, you just think to yourself, "why the hell did I just sit and watch that awful, awful movie???" Please don't waste your time with this. There are only a few memorable, funny lines, but I don't even remember them. My mind is so clouded with how bad this was. You'd think Will Smith could get his wife a decent part with how powerful he's become in Hollywood.

There won't be a Woo 2. This mixed-up and predictable film had a few funny moments but over all not worth the rent. If you are a big Davidson or Jada fan, it might be worth the look to check out their performances, otherwise stay away.

I cannot make it past the first 20 mins of this crappie film and the acting is so terrible

Not all movies are made to answer some of life's most puzzling questions. Not all movies are supposed to be 'intelligent' or 'thought-provoking'. Not all movies are made to change the world. Some movies are made for us to be able to sit back for one and a half hours, forget all our troubles and just have a good scream. This is one of those movies.. All my favorite comedy actors are here: Jada of course (looking as lovely as I've ever seen her), Dave Chapelle, Duane Martin, Paula Jai Parker, Aida Turturro, LL Cool J and Dartanyan Edmonds. Even Foxy Brown makes an appearance and it's not too bad either.

Overall, it is funny. Everyone has experienced the "blind date" syndrome and this movie takes it to another level. Lynne with the wine and fried chicken was funny, Tommies 3 friends in the gay club was classic, and everything that could go wrong for Tommie goes wrong. Jada was very sexy, smart, and in control. Something a lot of men may not enjoy watching. And who could hate a movie with the great Billy Dee Williams making a cameo appearance? Many people hated this movie and I can not see why unless your expectations were to high to begin with. Just relax, watch it, laugh, reflect, and have a good evening. We all know Jada and Tommy can do much better in other roles. All actors can have an average film or too in their careers.

Overall rating: 7 out of 10.

This is one of my favourite movies from the '90s! I must have seen it over 50 times both on TV, then when I purchased the video. I find it a fun movie that has a nice pace. All of the characters are funny, but my favourite part of the movie is when Hop (Darrel Heath) discovers what type of club he's been in all night. His facial expression is classic! Most of the reviews have been bad, but this movie will be an all time fave of mine for a long time to come. The CD soundtrack is great too!!

Had some laughs but it's a movie we've seen many times. Jada Pinckett is hot. Tommy Davidson is goofy. It's a one time watch for me. Check it out but don't pay to watch it. Look for it when it's free.

This movie was absolutely hilarious. Jada Pinkett Smith did a wonderful job and so did Tommy Davidson. It was funny the whole way through from beginning to end. Especially the part when woo and timothy were in the Italian restaurant! Woo is a beautiful woman who just wants to be free, and Timothy is a nerdy guy, with jerks as friends. Throughout the whole movie you'll see how they slowly come together and form a "special" kind of friendship. Ow, and there's a transvestite in the movie that's suppose to be one of Woo's really good friends. She's very, very funny. And so is Woo's cousn who goes out Lenny, whose Dave Chappelle. I recommend this movie to everyone who likes a good laugh.

Woo was released in May of 1998, near the end after Titanic hit it's stride of making more than a billion dollars worldwide at the box office and winning the top Academy Awards of that year. Well 1998 was a memorable year for me, and Woo was apart of it. Woo was far from earning any of the money and awards Titanic did, but it also had major competition of other block busters such as Godzilla.

To digress, I saw Woo back in theaters then and thought it was a reasonable romantic comedy. Jada Pinkett Smith was good as the sassy and sexy party girl who tries to seduce and date a straighted headed young lawyer (Tommy Davidson). I later re-discovered Woo on video a few years later and realized that it was indeed quite a dull comedy with little laughs, but the talent and directing and plot sorta kept it going. With Duane Martin and cameos by LL Cool J, Woo was nothing too special but at least viewed for the fans of Tommy Davidson and Jada Pinkett Smith.

On another note, Woo does have a good rather hip rap song 'Nobody Does it Better' performed by Warren G and Nate Dogg. Awesome song.

Surprise hidden gem!! I just saw this movie in 2020 & I thought it was hysterical and fun! It represents the 90's in true fashion and expression! What a great decade! It's great to see these stand up stars in action at a younger age. I miss seeing a lot of them in movies these days. This one is being added to my faves!

Woo (1998) is a movie I recently watched for the first time in a long time on Tubi. The storyline follows a young man down on his luck with the ladies. He is introduced to a crazy young lady who is gorgeous but has a larger than life personality in just about every way. Against his better judgement he decides to try and go on a date with this woman and his entire night is interrupted by his friends, her ex-boyfriends, her friends and her hijinks. Is there any way they can work?

This movie is directed by Daisy von Scherler Mayer (Party Girl) and stars Jada Pinkett Smith (The Matrix), Tommy Davidson (In Living Color), Duane Martin (Scream 2), LL Cool J (Deliver Us from Eva), Dave Chappelle (Half Baked) and Paula Jai Parker (Friday).

The storyline for this picture is fairly unique and the writing is better than you may expect. The storyline has over the top characters and selected the perfect cast to deliver them. Davidson and Pinkett Smith are awesome and there's some good cameos throughout the film, especially Chapelle and LL. The comedic content is inconsistent but there are some hilarious sequences sprinkled throughout the film.

Overall this is far from a classic but it is a worthwhile addition to the comedic genre. I would score this a 5.5-6/10 and recommend seeing it once.