Essentially a visual effects movie, this screwball comedy transforms 6’2” Marlon Wayans into a 2’6” midget who masquerades as a baby to retrieve a stolen diamond.

When jewel thief Calvin Sims (Marlon) and his partner Percy (Tracy Morgan) heist the famous Queen Diamond, there’s a glitch in their escape plan, forcing Calvin to drop the gem into Vanessa Edwards’ (Kerry Washington) purse. Unaware that she’s now involved in a high-stakes crime, Vanessa and her husband Darryl (Shawn Wayans) return to their suburban Chicago home – only to find an abandoned “baby” on their doorstep. It’s Calvin, of course, who finds retrieving the diamond not as easy as he imagined.

Basically, Calvin Sims is a human cartoon created by director Keenan Ivory Wayans and his siblings, who previously scored with “White Chicks.” The enterprising Wayans brothers have also launched their own trading card game called “The Dozens” and formed a comic book company, “5-D Comics.” As they age, it seems inevitable that, someday, they’re going to collaborate on their own version on “Grumpy Old Black Men.”

In order to achieve the “little man” visual effect, what you see is Marlon’s body double, Linden Porco, with Marlon’s head superimposed. Utilizing an old-fashioned 2D split composite, Motion Picture Company (MPC) of London was able to create the dual image. But this technique required that each scene be shot twice, first with Porco and the cast and then a second time with Marlon performing with only his head, against a green-screen. Moved-head replacement is not unique but it’s never been done on this grand scale before.

On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “Little Man” is a crass, exaggerated 4. It’s an intermittently intriguing gimmick concept that wears thin very quickly.