True Identity

Struggling black actor Miles Pope (Henry) is fed up with being offered parts in movies like 'Uptown Harlem Pimps on Crack'. Instead, he longs for the lead in Othello, but the closest he can get to stardom is as an understudy. Life is about to get worse: during the flight to an acting job, he learns that a fellow passenger is one-time mob boss Frank Luchino (Langella). Miles is now a marked man whose survival rests on the skills of special effects artist Duane (Lane). What better disguise, reasons Duane, than to change his pal into a white man? There are only so many jokes to be milked out of this scenario, and this frantic comedy milks them all. The transformation in Henry's appearance is truly amazing, but once the novelty has passed, the film proceeds to lumber from one signposted comic blunder to another. Henry's skills are tested by the poor script, but he does a spectacular job with a variety of American accents and guises.