European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 01, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Def comedy Jam definitely spiced with Ham and raw by John o Connor the new York times taped for Home Box office before an exuberant audience at the Academy Thea Terin new York City Russell Simmons de comedy Jam is a showcase for Blackstad up comics. Four Are crammed into each 27-minute show which also includes an open ing monologue from the Host Martin Lawrence. This is definitely not Bill Cosby territory. The Lan Guage is almost relentlessly and defiantly from the streets. Much of the subject matter is guaranteed to leave fundamentalist watchdogs sputtering. And of yes def comedy Jam is one of the most popular shows on Hob s schedule. A run of several new editions has begun. The beat is decidedly Urban and the uninhibited vulgarity is flaunted like a badge of Honor. One cer Tain four letter word and its Extension suggesting incest is sounded throughout like a communal mantra. Simmons honed his producing skills in the world of rap music and is described by Hob As the driving Force behind such stars As la Cool a Public enemy and run dec. In the first of the new shows Lawrence warms up the audience by proclaiming pointedly that this is where we Black Comedi ans can be completely unfettered. Underlining the Point is the first performer Sheryl Underwood a fast talking woman whose act has the dubious distinction of pro Viding not one line that can be quoted verbatim in this review. Martin Lawrence there is in this kind of routine and in def comedy Jam Overall a kind of ritual involving the comic and the audience. As the material gets More outrageous the audience especially the women feign embarrassment shaking their Heads and putting their hands Over their faces. That s part of the fun Long a tradition in comedy. In years past White comics like buddy Hackett used Blue material in their nightclub acts. Back then no one would have dreamed of putting it on  the genial and Sharp Lawrence mutters some thing about def being critic feed for being Blue and everything but then tosses the thought aside. When you be heard one or two Blunt descriptions of sexual acts the next few Aren t quite so jolting. When a comic actually provides a change of Pace it s a Relief. That s what Warren Hutcherson does on one of the Hob shows. The tall almost skeletal Hutcherson builds his act around the fact that he says his father is Muslim. Recalling a childhood Christmas in Baltimore he re members visiting a Santa Claus and his father urging to Tell him you want some  pop he says could find anti Blacks everywhere even on a grocery shelf where he pointed out to the boy a Box of just regular Rice but it s Black so they Call it  in Short with Low key wit hut Cherson gets beyond obvious sex jokes to comment on More Subtle aspects of being Black in America Lawrence Star of the Fox sitcom Martin presides Over these enormously energized Ribald sessions with unflagging aplomb even As he tweaks parts of the Black entertainment scene. Quoting new rip lyrics he wonders what Are they talking about and adds in disbelief that the stuffs  i be edited the language slightly Meg Ryan plays Annie Reed who has a pal in Becky portrayed by Rosic o Donnell in sleepless in  want to keep men sleepless in Heaters throw in Stone r by Mike littwin the Baltimore Sun s if there weren t enough issues dividing America now along comes a movie to add another. I m talking about sleepless in Seattle which is a Surprise hit of the season. But it s so much More. You know what i mean. If you Don there s an actual real life Conversa Tion after a night at the movie that should explain it. The Man i hated the movie. It was like 90 min utes of  the woman what s wrong with that " the Man suddenly sheepish and maybe embarrassed in nothing s wrong with that. There was just no  by no payoff he meant that Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan he Mari How can i put this delicately never quite hit the sheets. At least not where we could see them. The More the Man talked the worse it got for him. Which is Why most men Don t talk. Ask a woman Over dinner How her Day was at the office and she actually tells you. She starts with the traffic on the Way in and by the time she has gotten to 10 30 a.m., your eyes Are glazing Over and you know How the phrase Cut to the Chase came into being. Ask a Man what happened at the office and unless he was assaulted by circus midgets he says nothing. Would you pass the Salt what we have in sleepless is a shameless example of what is known in the Trade As a Chick  that Means it s Mushy and gooey and romantic and most of All does t have Sharon Stone in it. Meg Ryan is attracted to the sensitivity in the voice of a Man she has never met. This would not be believable if the roles were  a Guy chases a woman he has never met it s Richard Dreyfuss after Suzanne Sommers and her to Bird in american Graffiti. I Don t think it was her sensitivity that was driving him nuts. You see what sleepless does for men is Force us to re examine our values. We hate re examining our values. At the risk of generalizing Here women appreciate the build up in a movie. It can move slowly luxuriantly endlessly. It can move at the Pace of howards end no doubt a wonderful movie if you have say your entire life to watch it. Men watching howards end tend to do the George Bush thing. About 30 minutes into the movie they re checking their watches. Does t any body get blown up what i m saying is where women like build up men seem to go for Resolution. But maybe it s not As simple As that. In a scientific Survey of five men and five women i asked what they liked in a movie. The women All said they liked kissing. The men All said they liked naked women. Now these men were basically civilized in most ways. They even go to Classy movies. They All saw Henry a although mainly for the big fight sequence. But ask them for a classic scene from a classic movie and it s always something like what Susan Sarandon was doing with the Lemons in Atlantic City. At least nobody mentioned to Derek. It in t As if there in t common ground Here. Take a steamy movie like body heat. Or the big easy. I Don t know anyone who did t like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance kid. These arc movies filled with Romance. Men can appreciate Romance and a Story line particularly if there Are also some dead bodies. But How Many Guys liked beaches How Many Guys liked steel magnolias the list goes on. Fried Green tomatoes. Don t get me anywhere near the Prince of tides. Then there s a movie like a league of their own which should attract men because it has Madonna although surprisingly clothed and baseball. Tom Hanks who manages a women s baseball team in the movie plays a Drunken chauvinist pig who becomes enlightened by the company of Strong women. As if that Ever happened in real life. What they made was a woman s fantasy movie. The Only time you Ever see a Man appear to be Sud Denly enlightened is if he s trying to seduce a woman or is facing serious jail time. Look let s be honest Here. Maybe men Don t know what women want but women sure ought to know by now what men want. So take your typical Well meaning Guy and you re going to have to help him out movie Wise. What i m saying is if you re going to do a remake or say. Love Story and expect a Guy to see it Sharon Mone is going to have to play the Lead. Pages sunday August 1, 1993