Bringing down a career

If you’re old enough to remember when the last name Belushi meant John and not Jim, then you’re old enough to remember when Steve Martin was a major comic talent. I say that for the benefit of those of you who think that “Bringing Down the House” is a true indication of Martin’s abilities. Which it is not.

Martin was one of the original “Wild and Crazy Guys” (with Dan Aykroyd). He was one of the first, and best, of the recurring “Saturday Night Live” hosts. He made balloon animals. He had “happy feet.” He was “Theodoric of York, Medieval Barber.” He was “The Jerk.” He was funny, so funny.

In “Bringing Down the House,” he is merely embarrassing. This film, which sees blatantly racist taunts as humorous, is the kind of low career point that others are compared to. It represents not just a misjudgment of material but a bankruptcy of ideas. It is that bad and more.

It’s like the difference, say, between John and Jim. Belushi, that is.