I’ve seen quite a few shows that air on Disney Channel. This is partly because my wife used to watch them before we had kids. The other reason is that I review many of their DVDs. So I’m up to speed on “Lizzie McGuire,” “Phil of the Future” and even “That’s So Raven.”

However, I’ve never caught “The Proud Family” on the tube. I remember when it started, though; I saw ads for it 24-hours a day on the station. However, I never swerved into the show while channel surfing.

This brought me into “The Proud Family Movie” with a very fresh eye. I wasn’t familiar with the characters at all, although they were pretty easy to peg once I got into the flick. There’s the spunky teenage daughter (Penny Proud), her overbearing father (Oscar Proud), her understanding mother (Trudy Parker-Proud) and her dizzy live-in grandmother (Suga Mama).

This Disney Channel Original Movie sees the Proud Family dragged on a mysterious vacation by a mad scientist named Dr. Carver. It seems that Carver wants to partner with Oscar on some new inventions, but it turns out that Carver is actually a crazed maniac with an army of artificially intelligent peanuts. A subplot sees Penny trying to get her driver’s license as well as a dancing gig with the hot young rapper 15 Cent.

Okay, it’s not exactly the easiest story to swallow. And in some ways, it reminds me of the “Even Stevens Movie” that came out a couple months ago. Still, it works for a Disney Channel show.

Ultimately, “The Proud Family” movie turns into a funny little Disney Channel feature much in the same spirit as “Lizzie McGuire” or “Kim Possible.” However, the underlying concept of the show is a little rough. It’s as if Disney executives were sitting in a board room and declared, “We need a black Lizzie McGuire.”

It’s not that I want to point out the racial make-up of this films. It simply can’t be avoided. I understand the need to produce programming for different demographics, but this show tries so hard to reach a black audience it becomes a caricature of itself.

Let’s take score. The villain (Dr. Carver) is a descendant of George Washington Carver, a black scientist known for inventing peanut butter... Penny’s trying to be a back-up dancer for a rap artist (based on gang-banger 50 Cent, no less – that’s like making Marilyn Manson as a hero in an episode of “The Suite Life of Zach and Cody”)... the families twin babies sport Afros... the only nerdy girl in Penny’s clique is the white girl... shall I go on?

The racial push of “The Proud Family” is so forceful, it’s almost as if it’s saying, “Hey white kids. Don’t watch this show, ‘cause it’s not for you.” Maybe that’s why this show really isn’t catching on with a wide audience. Compare this to a classic show like “Fat Albert.” I always thought of that show as being about a group of friends having adventures in their neighborhood. I never thought of it as a black show. But “The Proud Family” just tries too hard and can get saddled with that label.

Once you get past all this, the movie’s not too bad. It runs out of its own racial stereotypes about half-way through and actually becomes a cute little film.

The DVD includes an extended alternate ending, which doesn’t fit as well as the original (and is probably why it’s the alternate) as well as a driver’s ed game. The highlight of the special features are the Shorties, featuring Suga Mama and her snarky dog



Specifications: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. Fullscreen (1.33:1). English subtitles for the hearing impaired.