Roadside Attractions

Comedian Chris Rock visits an Atlanta hairstyling competition in his documentary "Good Hair."

"Good Hair" has a huge advantage over other film documentaries: Its host is the comic Chris Rock.

He brings good-natured humor to the subject, which is the female African-American hair culture. He also brings lots of intriguing information.

The project reportedly was born when Rock's 5-year-old daughter asked why she didn't have "good hair." He set out to discover the meaning of the term -- taking along a film crew complete with writers and director Jeff Stilson -- and the result is now playing in theaters.

Rock's discovery? Good hair is mostly "white" hair.

Not white the color, but white in that it's straight or wavy rather than "nappy." And so-called good hair is a condition that African-American women are willing to spend thousands of dollars to achieve. They spend it on an array of expensive weaves, extensions, relaxers (straighteners) and perms.

In any case, the documentary reveals, cost doesn't matter because this is about something more important than money. It's about pride and self-esteem.

There are a number of downsides to the phenomenon, aside from the money that is siphoned away from consumers by the multi-billion-dollar industry.

Some of the chemicals used in perms can be dangerous. One -- sodium hydroxide, aka lye -- is shown dissolving an aluminum can. One of Rock's interview subjects tells of once having to shave her right temple after being burned there by the stuff.

Millions of women in India shave their heads for religious reasons. Their hair is collected by Indian entrepreneurs and sold to American salons at a terrific markup for use in extensions and weaves. That's one example of how most of the big money in the African-American hair culture is made not by blacks but by foreigners or whites, according to "Good Hair."

Finally, female 'dos can be a source of conflict between black women and their men. The women don't want their hair to be touched, even during those intimate moments. This formation is imparted most vividly -- and most hilariously -- during Rock's visits with male barbers and their candid patrons. Those scenes aren't politically correct, but they are really, really funny.

In addition to the salons and barbershops, Rock and his crew visit a black-owned hair products operation in Greensboro, N.C., religious institutions and hair dealers in India and a gaudy hairstyling competition in Atlanta. The latter, while entertaining in the way that bad Elvis imitators might be entertaining, weakens the movie and bears only marginal relevance to the main subject.

A much stronger element is the comic's informative conversations with interviewees ranging from Maya Angelou and the Rev. Al Sharpton to a diverse group of black actors, dancers, singers and entrepreneurs.

And in the end, the bemused Rock wisely concludes, what is inside his little girl's head is much more important than what's growing on it.