Debuting in a time where discussion on race in American cinema is at an absolute fever pitch, Morris From America explores the idea of cultural and personal identity through the lens of a 13-year old black aspiring free-styler living with his father (Craig Robinson) in the little white-washed German village of Heidelberg. Directed by Chad Hartigan, who won Sundance’s Best of Next prize in 2013 for This is Martin Bonner, Morris may be relatively light viewing but with fine performances across the board and a semi-charmed approach to talking about race and culture, Morris is a crowd-pleasing success story that could find love outside the festival circuit.

Morris is played by Markees Christmas whose heavy-set frame and puffy cheeks lends him a young Biggie look. As a wanna-be hip-hop artist, the character would take the comparison as the highest of compliments. His single father Curtis (Robinson) connects with his Morris over a crackling stereo, casually introducing his impressionable son to the “classics”. When Morris finds one track “too slow” and “without a hook”, Curtis grounds him. For about two minutes. This is their relationship.

Still acclimating to the German language, Morris’ only other social outlet is Inka (Wetland‘s Carla Juri). Morris is intensely guarded – surely the result of his mother passing away somewhat recently – claiming that he doesn’t want to make new friends. Inka insists that he drops by the local youth center, if only to practice his Deutch. But upon spying 15-year-old bombshell Katrin (Lina Keller), Morris is head over heels and ready to do anything to win her attention.

What follows is a definitively “cute” coming-of-age story. And though it is mostly slight, there’s some dramatic material here that gives Morris the added padding to make it emotionally significant and almost wholly worthwhile. Morris’ coy willingness to put himself at risk of embarrassment – from rolling up on parties where he doesn’t know anyone to presenting free style raps in front of large groups – runs parallel to his growing affection.

Christmas handles the material admirably. It takes a kind of wisdom-beyond-ones-years for a child to believably play a child and Christmas’ performance is charged with the duality of a child trying to grow up too quickly and that of one who knows his limits. Nothing shows this better than Morris’ preternally ability to judge his surrounding. For instance, when he’s pressured into taking MDMA, he turns and spits it out when no-one’s looking.

The message beneath Morris is not location-specific, as it addresses a number of issues affecting modern day teenagers around the world. There’s been a paradigm shift in terms of the maturation process that has seen the typical experimentation stage of college shift to the high school years and earlier. You only need to crack a newspaper or press your ear to any local high school gossip to learn that the cat is out of the bag in regard to designer drugs and teenagers aren’t just sneaking beers anymore.

This fact is processed tangentially by Curtis who must come to terms with his son’s filling into himself and navigate the tricky waters that is not pushing him away. With no safety net in the form of a mother/wife, Curtis and Morris are really all one another have so to see their communication break down, when both so wholly need the understanding of the other, makes for some weighty emotional pangs in an otherwise drama-lite film.

Robinson’s cool-headed comfort with the material and his brand of paternal role proves how versatile the comedian can be, spotlighting how well he works against children. Think Daryl’s relationship – limited though it may be – with his daughter on The Office to get a better understanding of what I mean. There’s a hawkish desire to insulate his son from the pain of the world and yet, he’s very nonchalant and fraternal in their interactions.

When Morris From America heads into its final stages and both the characters and the film take their true form, significant emotional and physical revelations take hold and there’s a spiritual congruency that emerges between father and son; these two token figures living in a foreign land. When Morris finally takes up the mic and explodes onstage, even audience members will find themselves proud as a pickle.

CONCLUSION: ‘Morris From America’ is a light-hearted, semi-charmed hip-hop coming-of-age story that sees Craig Robinson and Markees Christmas play a father and son adjusting to living in a small Germany village as Morris traverses the waters of first crushes, living abroad and inaugural parties. It’s sleight but hugely amiable.