YMMV / Malibu's Most Wanted

• Big-Lipped Alligator Moment: In a movie that's at least fairly grounded in realism, there is a bit with Snoop Dogg voicing a rat that B-Rad sees and has a heart-to-heart with. Naturally, it's still an Imagine Spot, but it comes out of nowhere and it really only has relevance for him to eventually realize that he can hear Sean and P.J through the vent, which leads to him finding out about the ruse.
• Hilarious in Hindsight: There's a scene in the movie where B-Rad screams out, "RUN BITCH RUN! HE GON' KILLLLL YOU!" in a crowded movie theater during a horror movie and that's what Regina Hall's character was doing in Scary Movie (2000)—obnoxiously screaming things during the movie and irritating everyone around her.
• Moral Event Horizon: Tom Gibbons crosses it when he refuses to pay B-Rad's ransom, deciding to kill two birds with one stone by getting rid of a public embarrassment and gaining sympathy votes for Bill as well. Thankfully, Bill actually cares about and loves his son, so when he finds out, he not only goes out to find him, he fires Tom on the spot before doing so.
• Retroactive Recognition:
  • A pre-Heroes Greg Grunberg has a small role as one of Tom's aides.
  • A still up-and-coming Terry Crews appears as 8-Ball, one of Tec's gangsta lackeys.
• Values Dissonance: In 2003, Brad's Pretty Fly for a White Guy schtick mostly just came across as clueless and ridiculous. But due to changing attitudes about cultural appropriation, it's a lot more likely to be viewed as outright racist (or at least racially insensitive) today if the viewer is not aware of what a "wigger" happens to be or that the film itself is taking the piss out of Eminem and other white rappers like Vanilla Ice. The whole thing is a parody of 8 Mile but then is also mixing in other critiques of white people adopting black culture and abusing it.
• The Woobie: Brad. The only reason he even thinks of himself a black rapper is because his parents were never around, so he got hooked on the music his black caretaker listened to. This seems to be his only outlet where he can express himself. Even when he wants to communicate with his parents—as shown in a deleted scene—they brush him off. When he attempts to make his rap dreams come true, he's kidnapped by actors, a plan hatched by his very own father for downright selfish reasons. To add insult to injury, the first girl he starts to like who is actually a real person—and not a girl from the internet—is also in on the plan. Even worse, this fake plan almost gets him killed for real! Even though his dad rescues him, most father/son relationships would be strained after something like this...

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