TARNISHED ‘CHILD’

At the glittery preem for “Golden Child” in NYC, producer Ed Feldman wondered if some of the L.A. crowd--meaning the critics--weren’t gunning for star Eddie Murphy. Of the negative “buzz” about the then-unseen film, Feldman said: “It’s the usual. In L.A., they are all waiting for him to fail.”

Well, the L.A. critics were hostile: “A golden turkey,” declared Todd McCarthy of Daily Variety. “A mishmashed catastrophe,” said Peter Rainer, Her-Ex. “Yet another dumb Spielberg rip-off,” said Michael Burkett, Orange County Register. “Dismal,” said Duane Byrge, Hollywood Reporter.

The East Coast gang wasn’t much nicer. The script that sent Murphy to Tibet on a quest to find a child known as the Chosen One took a good thrashing; the star survived with bruises. Samples:

“Hard to trade quips with a bunch of special effects that mostly seem like outtakes from ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark.’ “--Richard Schickel, Time.

“One of those projects that make you wonder if there’s any common sense left in Lalaland.”--David Ansen, Newsweek.

“(Murphy’s skepticism) is worn thin by the awareness that not even he seems able to take the adventure seriously and by the preposterousness and inconsistency that surrounds him.”--Vincent Canby, N.Y. Times.

“(Murphy) is hogtied by one of the most absurdly labyrinthian stories of the year.”--Michael Blowen, Boston Globe.

“Warmed-over Spielberg despite the manful efforts of Murphy and director (Michael) Ritchie to inject life into the proceedings.”--Desmond Ryan, Philadelphia Inquirer.

“The entire movie is tailored to Murphy, sodden with a sense that his every remark is hilarious, that his every smoldering look will have ushers shuttling back and forth with salts of ammonia to revive the women expiring in the aisles”--Paul Attanasio, Washington Post.

There were rare raves:

“Magic is truly afoot here: Murphy is transformed into the full-bodied screen hero he was destined to become. . . . Murphy has taken that gigantic leap from successful black comic to outright leading man.”--Jack Curry, USA Today.

“(Murphy) slides through the picture with easy wisecracks and unflappable cool, like a hip Bob Hope. ‘Golden Child’ may not be the Eddie Murphy movie we’ve been waiting for, but it will do. It is funnier, more assured and more tailored to Murphy than ‘Beverly Hills Cop’ ever was and it shows a side of his comic persona that I don’t think has been much appreciated; his essential underlying sweetness.”--Roger Ebert, New York Post and Chicago Sun-Times.

Will “The Golden Child” prove to be “review-proof”? Well, the first weekend’s ticket sales were in excess of $11 million.

Asked about the gibes, Feldman said, “Some of the reviews were accurate . . . but I also think the critics were lying in wait. They had prejudged Eddie.”

Of the complaints about Murphy’s superhero stance this time, he added: “The critics want to see him play the same part. This was a stretch for him, there’s no question. But I think he stretched pretty well.”