Still, there is much to enjoy here if you can get past the artificial elements, and though the final quarter takes an unexpected twist that could have used a bit more foundation, it is quite heartfelt and genuine — and owes much to Wood-ard's wonderful screen presence.

"Crooklyn" is rated PG-13 for violence, profanity, vulgarity and drugs.

— "THE INKWELL" is a follow-up to the low-budget, independent and very personal "Straight Out of Brooklyn," which garnered so much attention for 19-year-old filmmaker Matty Rich at the Sundance Film Festival three years ago.

But "The Inkwell" is a bigger-budget Hollywood picture, and Rich seems at sea with the material.

The setting is a strip of beach at Martha's Vineyard during the summer of '76, an area referred to as "The Inkwell" because it serves as a vacation spot for upscale blacks.

The story focuses on a 16-year-old boy (Larenz Tate), whose parents (Joe Morton, Suzanne Douglas) take him for a summer vacation to his aunt and uncle's place in Martha's Vineyard. The trouble is, his father is an ex-Black Panther and very liberal, while his uncle is an arch-conservative.

If this sounds like it has potential to be a ripe comedy, don't get your hopes up. Instead, it turns into a dull reworking of "The Summer of '42," with Larenz learning about life — and ultimately, about sex — as he finds himself attracted to a girl his own age and a couple of adult women.

But there is nothing to distinguish the film, aside from a lot of poorly staged slapstick, primarily from Tate, who makes his character so goofy that he would be better suited to a sitcom. Meanwhile, the parents seem to be trying to imitate the Bill Cosby-Richard Pryor segment of "California Suite."

This is an unfortunate misfire from a young director who has apparently bitten off more than he can chew. Let's hope he fares better next time.

"The Inkwell" is rated R for language, as well as some sex and nudity.

— "A MILLION TO JUAN" is also a bit too ambitious for its director, first-timer Paul Rodriguez, best known as a stand-up comic, though he has had roles in other films ("Made in America").

Rodriguez is charming as a Mexican immigrant in East Los Angeles, a widower with a young son who is having trouble making ends meet. One day, as he is selling oranges on a street corner, a white stretch limo drives up and Rodriguez is handed an envelope. Later, when he opens it, he finds a check for $1 million and a note that says there is a catch. He can't cash it, but he can use it for a month. Then he must return it, and he'll receive a gift.

As you might expect, this leads to his briefly living the rich life, only to find that wealth isn't all it's cracked up to be.

Though it is loosely based on a Mark Twain story, the film has echoes of everything from "Brew-ster's Millions" to Cheech Marin's "Born in East L.A." (in which Rodriguez had a role — and Marin has a cameo here).

Edward James Olmos and Ruben Blades also show up for bit parts, but the film's problems range from underdeveloped and cartooney characters to amateurish staging and maudlin soap opera plotting.

If it were funny enough, these elements might be forgiven. It's not.

"A Million to Juan" is rated PG for a couple of profanities and vulgarities.