“Why has it taken
so long for someone to make this kind of movie” is a question that may not seem
like a compliment initially, but I usually do mean it to be whenever I ask it
of myself. Because what is smarter than seeing something obvious that no one
else has seen? In the case of They Cloned Tyrone, why did it take
so long for someone to make a movie that combines blaxploitation comedy tropes
with science fiction thriller? Because the combination is great, as it turns
out, even if the novelty does wear a bit thin by the end of the film.
Directed by newcomer Juel Taylor, They
Cloned Tyrone premiered at the American Black Film Festival in June before
getting a limited theatrical release. It was then plopped onto Netflix and was
advertised as an exclusive for the platform, a fact that didn’t bode well with
me, seeing as how that particular streaming service is very hit-and-miss these
days with its original content. But They Cloned Tyrone is actually
really good, in no small part because of the intelligent script written by Tony
Rettenmaier and Taylor himself that combines sharp humor with genuinely
insightful social commentary that is reminiscent of the race-based horror
explored in director Jordan Peele’s films. This mixture is further refined by
science fiction-y ideas that are interesting but a bit unfocused, as they
include concepts such as cloning, mind control, eugenics, and many more without
giving too much attention to any of them. But the science fiction itself isn’t
too important, really, as it’s mostly the laughs, mystery, and commentary that
drive Tyrone. The script and story are brought to life by a
wonderful cast of characters, and the chemistry between the main trio—drug
dealer Fontaine (John Boyega, who pulls double duty as the dramatic focus and
straight man), pimp Slick Charles (Jamie Foxx, our main source of laughs), and
sex worker/Nancy Drew fan Yo-Yo (Teyonah Parris, who gets to be both dramatic
and hilarious depending on the situation)—is hard to top.
It’s also hard to deny the style that They
Cloned Tyrone enjoys, from Juel Taylor’s impressive directing (there are
some really cool shots in there) to the music (I watched it with subtitles and
my favorite audio description was “scary funk music plays”) to the costuming
(Slick Charles in particular was clearly a blast for the costume department to
outfit). It is a good-looking film in addition to being an enjoyable one, at
least until late in the last act, at which point things become your standard
chrome-surfaced, sterile laboratory science-fictiony fare. By then the novelty
of the premise had worn a bit thin for me and I started to get a bit bored,
mostly because the film feels like it lost a lot of the creativity and
uniqueness that made it stand out up until that point. But last act
aside, They Cloned Tyrone is one of the better movies I’ve
seen this year, and you should definitely check it out if you’re good for a
chuckle or two.
They Cloned Tyrone is now
available on Netflix.
This review was first published in the
Keizertimes on August 25th, 2023. Visit at www.keizertimes.com/
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