Directed by: Charles Stone III
Written by: Jay Longino
Starring: Kyrie Irving, Lil Rel Howery, Shaquille O’Neal, Chris Webber, Reggie Miller
Rating: [2.5/5]
Making a film from an idea conceived by a soft drink commercial seems like a strange decision, but when it presents the opportunity to bring together famous athletes in one movie, you could make some money. This serves as the main reason for the existence of Uncle Drew, which struggles mightily on a narrative level but brings just enough fun in the jokes and generational divide to not make it wholly unbearable.
Struggling to maintain his lifestyle as a coach for the Harlem Money, Dax (Lil Rel Howery) gets usurped and left out in the cold. Now financially destitute and with no team, he meets a streetball legend Uncle Drew (Kyrie Irving) as they assemble the old-timer’s team last seen in the 1980s to put together a unit that can take on Dax’s former unit led by his arch-nemesis Mookie Bass (Nick Kroll).
The entire conceit of Uncle Drew has its inherent silliness where we have these older gentlemen aged up to amplify their age for the purposes of the story. With its origination from a Pepsi commercial, the central joke centered on a cantankerous old man who has the moves to play basketball showing up young people. It plays into the “old head” debate that continues to transpire when talking about professional basketball where these older men complain about the current game and the younger folk who play contemporarily. In these commercials, Uncle Drew, who’s NBA player Kyrie Irving in heavy makeup, destroys individuals much younger than him. Something that makes no sense physiologically. Most men at the age of what Uncle Drew is supposed to be would rupture their Achilles in pulling off just one of those moves. However, the idea of laying out the comedic potential and stretching it out to a feature film comes across as a dubious effort but one that did not completely fail.
In assembling the team we have other former NBA players aged such as Chris Webber, Shaquille O’Neal, Reggie Miller, and Nate Robinson. They had their unique skills and the characters they play here certainly accentuate what made them famous in their playing days. The addition and general humor held between them make for the best parts the film has to offer. While none of these former players have the best acting chops, seeing as they have not applied their trade in this area, they still deliver some of these jokes quite well. The more it focuses on them, the film works, however, this feature needs some sort of narrative throughline and the one we receive is far from captivating.
Lil Rel Howery’s Dax has this redemption arc where he has everything he cares for taken from him and essentially starts to the bottom to regain self-confidence and a purpose to live. He loses everything, even his girlfriend played by the always-funny Tiffany Haddish. While necessary if they wanted to stretch this into a feature-length film, it serves as the weakest part of the film because Dax’s story does not necessarily captivate in the ways it should, especially if it sought to take away from the moments we spend with the old heads. Lil Rel Howery tries his best but with the material he receives never quite works.
All culminating in the final showdown between the old heads and the younger team, which includes current NBA players like Aaron Gordon presents this fantasy older men who played basketball that they could put on those shows once again and teach these young kids a thing or two on the court. It has its fun sequences and ultimately serves as the main reason to watch this film as we see this face-off and all of the ways these older players need to dig deep into their past to muster up their remaining strength to win this battle for pride.
Mostly serviceable for what it sought to achieve but still very flawed as a feature film, Uncle Drew provides entertainment to those who have a vested interest in these players or street basketball as a whole. Everything about aging up these men sets up the entire farce of his narrative but it works in more moments than it does not. Not something that will carry much staying power but proves difficult to dislike.
Films with Josh 
