My Top 10 Favorite Martin Lawrence Movies.
When it comes to comedy, Martin Lawrence is one of the GOATS. The Michael Jordan of comedy, Martin has been the reigning champ for decades and his status has only been raised the longer his iconic work is passed down from one generation to the next. His giant hit sitcom Martin was a huge success for the Fox network from 1992–1997 and it made Martin as well as his co-stars household names. After Martin, Lawrence focused on stand up and feature films and we all have our favorites, these are my top ten best of Marty-Mar!
10. Welcome Home, Roscoe Jenkins. 2008.
Martin starred in this quirky little family comedy alongside a stellar cast that included Cedric The Entertainer, Monique, Michael Clark Duncan, Joy Bryant, Mike Epps, Nicole Ari Parker, Margaret Avery and James Earl Jones. The movie is grossly underrated as it’s a charming little comedy about the craziness as well as the deep bond of family.
9. House Party. 1990.
The original House Party managed to influence the culture and make us all laugh for thirty years and Martin’s hilarious character Dragon Breath played a big role in that. The classic 90’s teen comedy made stars out of everyone involved, and while Martin wasn’t the star of the film, his performance was both funny and memorable.
8. Martin Lawrence Live: Runteldat. 2002.
When it comes to iconic concert films we got Eddie Murphy’s Delirious & Raw, The Original Kings of Comedy and Chris Rock’s Bring The Pain among others, but Martin Lawrence’s underrated Runteldat belongs in that category because in this film Martin is at his most vulnerable, most raw and most no holds barred funny as he’s ever been on stage. The film was shot after his huge ordeal with his coma and legal trouble, and Martin’s blend of vulnerability and making fun of his situation is reminiscent of the late great Richard Pryor in his classic 1979 special Richard Pryor: Live in Concert.
7. Bad Boys 2. 2003.
While I personally think that Will took more of the spotlight in this one, Martin still got his moments to shine bright as the lovably cranky and forever put upon Marcus Burnett in this action packed and hilarious sequel. Bad Boys 2 brought all the fun and crazy action that the first film delivered in spades, and the chemistry between Will and Martin was still as strong and as fun to watch as ever.
6. Boomerang. 1992.
This iconic 1992 romantic comedy had an ensemble like no other with the almighty Eddie Murphy at the helm, but Martin still managed to pop onscreen with the other heavyweights as the conspiratorial and forever horny Tyler. Boomerang is an immortal classic and the chemistry of its cast played a huge part in that, especially whenever you had Eddie Murphy, Martin Lawrence and David Alan Grier together.
5. Blue Streak. 1999.
Blue Streak is a sorely underrated comedy gem that lets Martin do what he does so brilliantly all the way through. We can’t help but root for Miles Logan to get away with the jams he keeps getting into and that’s purely because of how charismatic and fun to watch Martin is in the film.
4. A Thin Line Between Love and Hate. 1996.
What was essentially the black Fatal Attraction ended up giving us a tone and style all its own. This was Martin’s directorial debut as well as having co-written the script with Bentley Kyle Evans, Kim Bass and Kenny Buford. The movie is a thoroughly enjoyable comedy-thriller with a stellar cast that Lawrence and company put together. It deserves much more acclaim and attention then it gets because it’s a really great movie, and kudos should also go to Martin for his directorial skills because the film turned out very well in spite of his drug issues taking hold at this point.
3. Bad Boys. 1995.
This is the film that turned Martin Lawrence and Will Smith into full fledged movie stars and gave us a true action-comedy classic. Martin and Will were sharing the spotlight but no doubt that Martin was stealing scenes left and right with his comedic skills on full display. People were surprised that a comedian could hold his own so well in the action scenes at the time but Martin has always had athletic prowess as a Boxer in his youth so Bad Boys allowed him to really play up to both his strengths.
2. Big Momma’s House. 2000.
Big Momma was the first film Lawrence did after his unfortunate heat stroke and coma incident, and he hit the ground running out the gate with this classic action-comedy. A star studded cast headed up by Lawrence at his comedic best. While the very poor sequels have somewhat made a joke out of the Big Momma legacy, this first film managed to be straight up wacky and goofy fun while also having a whole lot of heart, warmth, suspense and action, giving the viewer a full course meal. Martin Lawrence managed to take what should’ve been a one note joke of a character and gave her heart and soul.
1. Life. 1999.
If you ask me, 1999’s Life should easily be in anyone’s top 5 list of movies for both Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence. The film allowed both men to shine not only comedy wise but dramatically. Martin Lawrence especially had never been allowed to really show that vulnerable and soulful side of himself before Life and rarely after either. The film skillfully gave us poignancy and raw reality while also making us laugh our behinds off with classic scenes like the Cornbread, I the pappy and White only pies scenes. If you ask me Martin has never been better than in this truly classic film.
Happy MLK day, everyone! It was my pleasure to honor this iconic Martin as it always is to honor the other iconic Martin. Peace!
