Juwanna Mann (2002)

10% of critics liked it
(83 reviews)
44% of users liked it
(8,043 ratings)

It's Big Momma's House on the three-point line in this broad farce, which marks the leading man/woman debut of longtime character actor Miguel A. Nunez. Nunez stars as Jamal Jefferies, a hotheaded pro basketball player whose on-court antics and quick temper get him booted from the league altogether.… More It's Big Momma's House on the three-point line in this broad farce, which marks the leading man/woman debut of longtime character actor Miguel A. Nunez. Nunez stars as Jamal Jefferies, a hotheaded pro basketball player whose on-court antics and quick temper get him booted from the league altogether. Faster than you can say Dennis Rodman, Jamal has transformed himself into the busty Juwanna Mann in order to be a forward for a high-intensity team in the WUBA league, the Charlotte Banshees. Behind the doors of the womens' lockerroom, Jamal unexpectedly falls for Michelle Langford (Vivica A. Fox), the team's no-nonsense captain. But prosthetic breasts and false eyelashes aren't the only thing preventing Jamal from finding true love with Michelle: there's also the problem of her aggressive, two-timing boyfriend, Romeo (Ginuwine), not to mention the unwanted advances Juwanna gets from a skanky rapper named Puff Smokey Smoke (Tom Davidson). ~ Michael Hastings, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: PG-13, 1 hr. 31 min.
Directed By: Jesse Vaughan
Written By: Bradley Allenstein
Genres: Comedy

In Theaters: Jun 18, 2002 Wide
On DVD: Nov 19, 2002
Studio: Warner Bros.

Critic Reviews

Ted Shen, Chicago Reader
The idea of transposing the story to the macho, greedy world of big-time sports is promising, but director Jesse Vaughan delivers only flat dialogue and predictable situations.
David Germain, Associated Press
The movie is sloppily edited, the gags limply staged, the dialogue and jokes stiff and stale. Even the action on the basketball court is unimaginative and boring.
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly
A Tootsie-role sports farce that's a drag in every which way.
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper
Simplistic, silly and tedious.
Laura Sinagra, Village Voice
This flat run at a hip-hop Tootsie is so poorly paced you could fit all of Pootie Tang in between its punchlines.
Dennis Harvey, Variety
[Brings] absolutely no fresh angles to a time-tested formula that's seemed particularly overworked of late.
Nell Minow, Common Sense Media
Cross-dressing sports comedy has lockerroom humor.
Anna Smith, Empire Magazine
As limp as it is lazy.
Anna Smith, Time Out
An unpersuasive moral journey, with a smattering of laughs, that fails to justify the insulting premise that only a man can help the ladies win at both basketball and love.
Andrew Manning, Radio Free Entertainment
Bogus and wickedly unoriginal.
John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis
Juwanna man? No, we wanna good laugh.
John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis
...about as exciting to watch as two last-place basketball teams playing one another on the final day of the season.
Peter Bradshaw, Guardian [UK]
Some like it lukewarm in this tale.
Paul Malcolm, L.A. Weekly
Vaughan brings such disregard to the film that its pedestrian on-court action might as well have been shot from the bleacher seats.
Margaret A. McGurk, Cincinnati Enquirer
It's hard to know what to make of a film such as this, with its implicit message that it takes men to empower women in sports.
, FilmFour.com
The referee should have cried 'foul' on this long before it hit the screens.
Anita Schmaltz, Metro Times (Detroit, MI)
'Wouldn't it be nice if all guys got a taste of what it's like on the other side of the bra?'
Jamie Russell, BBC
This mess of a movie is nothing short of a travesty of a transvestite comedy.
Eric D. Snider, EricDSnider.com
What a stiflingly unfunny and unoriginal mess this is!

Read all 19 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

♥˩ƳИИ &

This movie was funny, but really had no point at all. Just a silly movie for when you wanna laugh I guess.
Deb S

Miguel A. Nunez plays Jamal Jeffries, a NBA bad boy whose court antics are so outrageous; he gets booted out the league so he decides to dress as a woman and join the WNBA. To his surprise, he makes it but ends up starting to fall for his teammate, Michelle (played by Vivica A. Fox.)… More
Miguel A. Nunez plays Jamal Jeffries, a NBA bad boy whose court antics are so outrageous; he gets booted out the league so he decides to dress as a woman and join the WNBA. To his surprise, he makes it but ends up starting to fall for his teammate, Michelle (played by Vivica A. Fox.) The rest of the movie is hilarious fun. Miguel A. Nunez JR. does great as Jamal Jeffries/Juwanna Mann and does a brilliant job of imitating a woman. The movie is kind of predictable though but it has some funny moments and some cute parts.
Leo L

Hilarious! Miguel A. Nunez Jr. is fantastic. This movie leaves you laughing hard. Ginuwine does a guest appearance, a pretty interesting role.

Cast

            Miguel A. Núñez Jr. as Jamal Jeffries/Juwanna Mann

            Vivica A. Fox as Michelle Langford

            Kevin Pollak as Lorne Daniels

            Tommy Davidson as Puff Smokey Smoke

            Kim Wayans as Latisha Jansen

            Jenifer Lewis as Aunt Ruby

            Ginuwine as Romeo

            Annie Corley as Coach Rivers

            Tammi Reiss as Vickie Sanchez

            Heather Quella as Magda Rowonowitch

            Vlade Divac as Beat Player Morse

            J. Don Ferguson as UBA Referee

            Roy Firestone as himself

            Mert Hatfield as Arbitrator

            Pearl Jones as Esther

            Jay Leno as himself

            Terry Loughlin as Commissioner

            Ric Reitz as Beat Coach

            Elliott Street as Doctor

            Judy Simpson Cook as Nurse

            Deanna Davis as Carla

            Cynthia Cooper as herself

            Kimberly "Lil' Kim" Jones as Tina Parker

            Kevin Frazier as himself

            Omar J. Dorsey as Rickey

            Lance Krall as Asian Guy

            Angela Cossey as Natalie Kemper

            Itoro Coleman as Scruggs Debbie

            Bonnie Johnson as Lorne's Secretary

            Deborah Calloway Duke as Mable

            Tyrone "Mugsy" Bogues as Stewart Andrew

            Dikembe Mutombo as Arch Player Coyner

            Rasheed Wallace as Beat Player Whitley

            Jeanne Zelasko as herself

            Chris Myers as Himself

            Kenny Albert as himself

            Katy Steding as herself

            Teresa Weatherspoon as herself

            Reginald Coles III as Beat Player Kerns

            Mark Allan Stewart as City Cop

            Andrew Kenny as Autograph Kid

            Brittani Warrick as Young Girl

            Jaclyn Dahm as Triplet #1

            Erica Dahm as Triplet #2

            Nicole Dahm as Triplet #3

            Eddie Rouse Jr. as Moving Man

            Michael Drake as Waiter

            Everett Summers as WUBA Referee

            Carol Mitchell as Betty

            Miguel A Nunez
            
See full cast