Why you should watch this instead of the Original

The ever obnoxious Martin Lawrence is the main reason I will NEVER see this.


Jesus is my Best friend, but he still won't loan me money.

I liked the American version of DAAF; I also liked the British version. Each version had its faults and strengths. And in some aspects, it was about even for me. I liked the performances of both MacFadyen and Chris Rock, for instance. Matthew MacFadyen is one of Great Britain's best actors - he does drama and comedy well.
I didn't like the British boyfriend with the black fingernail polish in the original - or anything else about him. Luke Wilson was far better and more believable. I liked Alan Tudyk, but I liked James Marsden far better.
Some of the women in the British version were far too shrill - when they didn't like something, their eyes bugged out. Example: in the funeral when they were discussing the parking situation. I am aware of the director's dvd commentary about the British actors' use of their eyes, but in a couple of instances, it was overdone. Mostly done well, though, with some exceptions.
I've said it before: Martin Lawrence was just plain not funny and his diction is terrible. His best scene was "Ohhh, Daddy!" but then he ruined it by adding to the dialog - about the yoga wheelbarrow position. Less was more.
I think there was a good-old-boy system working there. There are funnier comedians than Lawrence. I watch a great deal of comedy - stand-up - and Lawrence is not half as good as others I've seen.
I'm very glad James Marsden was in the film - I don't know who casted him or how the casting system works, but Straw Dogs will be his second Screen Gems film. And it seems to me that he was in more than one New Line film besides Hairspray. Do they sign contracts with the studios to do x number of films, and then the casting directors have to choose from who's available? LaBute said in the dvd commentary that Marsden was a "surprise." When did he find out about Marsden's talent for comedy? And I got the distinct impression that when LaBute was complimenting Marsden (and Rock was part of the commentary), Rock did not want to hear it. He kept praising Morgan and Lzwrence. Rock has an undercurrent of hostility in his personality - just look at his stand-up work - and I wonder how far that hostility goes. Just asking.
But I'm not complaining - just asking, aa I said. Marsden was the best actor in that whole movie. More than one person has said he deserved an Oscar for his Oscar.
To respond to deviates' March 20 posting, I don't think the director is entirely to blame for any lack of humor. And LaBute has worked with Chris Rock before - and Rock, I think, had a great deal of input in the film.
Someone else spoke of British versus American humor. British humor can be very broad - just like American humor can. Don't forget the British vaudeville stage or Benny Hill. (Hill could also be subtle - he was a favorie of mine.)