Bobby Taylor (Robert Townsend) is an aspiring black actor from a middle class LA neighborhood. He and Donald (Keenen Ivory Wayans) work at fast food joint Winky Dinky Dog. His family, his friends, and girlfriend Lydia are generally supportive despite the degrading stereotype roles.

This tackles the issue of race in Hollywood. It needs a more concrete central plot. His search for acting work gets scattered. The structure is vignette in nature. Townsend is a little too old to play this wide-eyed character. He's 30 and should be more weary. It does have a lot of individual sections that work. The film criticism is fun. The auditions are pretty standard. The acting class is hilarious with the white guy doing jive. The black and white does not suggest noir but rather blaxoploitation. The Rambo speech is great but it needs to be more epic. Some of this works more than others but when it works, it's fresh.

Director/co-writer Robert Townsend gives a wonderfully engaging performance as eager and affable aspiring actor Bobby Taylor, who's having trouble getting that one major role that will launch his career. While waiting for his big break Bobby daydreams about being a movie star. Townsend delivers a pointed, incisive and often uproarious comic critique of racial stereotypes in mainstream Hollywood fare with a series of spot-on and frequently sidesplitting parodies. "Sneakin' in the Movies," a hilariously rude spoof of TV review shows, rates as the definite gut-busting highlight: two hip homeboys from the hood give their profane opinions on recent theatrical releases (they both give one flick they totally hate the finger!). Other amusing skits are "Black Acting School" (one of the courses is Jive Talk 101),the blaxploitation send-up "Jivetime Jimmy's Revenge," and the tongue-in-cheek private eye romp "Death of A Breakdancer." Townsend effortlessly carries the picture with his supremely amiable presence. Excellent supporting turns by Helen Martin as Bobby's loving grandmother, Anne-Marie Johnson as Bobby's loyal girlfriend Lydia, Starletta Dupois as Bobby's sweet mother, Craigus R. Johnson as Bobby's adorable younger brother Stevie, David McNight as Bobby's sad failure Uncle Ray, Keenan Ivory Wayans and Ludie Washington as a couple of shiftless hot dog stand workers, and Dom Irrera as a low-rent schlock movie screenwriter. Moreover, there's a palpable feeling of genuine heart and warmth in this film which in turn adds immensely to its considerable charm. A real delight.

Hollywood Shuffle is one of the best black comedies of all-time. It served as a big f--- you to Hollywood for its sickening portrayal of black people. Robert Townsend used comedy for a great purpose(to convey a truth) and it worked out splendidly.

Premise: Bobby(played by Robert Townsend) has dreams of making it big in Hollywood. He works for a crummy hot dog stand called Rinky-Dinky Dog(no, really) with idiotic co-workers as well as an idiotic boss. The only problem Bobby faces is the negative roles that Follywood tends to offer black people. He soon has to make a decision if he wants to go with the BS roles of the movie industry or to go a different route.

Opinion: This movie hits the nail on the head with the types of roles that Follywood has destined for us to play. Its funny as well as sharp in its delivery. The Black Acting School skit has to be the funniest sketch in the movie. The black detective is the second funniest thing. Sure most people might say that the acting is over-the-top but these actors who play in the types of movies that Hollywood Shuffle parodies are always over the top with their performance so what are you talking about? I respect Hollywood Shuffle for using humor to address a serious subject instead of stooping to the brainless comic dung that you get from these Chittlin Circuit movies that are produced nowadays. And the sad thing is that people are trouncing gems like Hollywood Shuffle while embracing minstrel rubbish like Soul Plane, Norbit, Code Name: The Cleaner, Juwanna Mann etc. A sad state of affairs. In closing I would say support comedies like Hollywood Shuffle any chance you get. They're the only bright light you get in the dark tunnel of comedy in Hollywood.