In Hollywood, it is typical for a film’s trailer to be better than the film itself. Editors cherry-pick the most exciting parts of the movie and assemble them together to make the project more sellable. Rarely does a trailer do an injustice to its source — however, this is exactly what happened with “Guess Who.”

Ashton Kutcher plays the role of Simon Green, and it seems his portrayal of a guy trying to impress his girlfriend’s father is becoming the keynote of his career. This time he is up against comic veteran and world-class intimidator Bernie Mac as his fiancee’s father, Percy Jones.

What saves Kutcher and the rest of the film from becoming another “My Boss’ Daughter” is the parallel conflict of racial tension as the two battle for territory in a series of comical and sometimes heartfelt situations.

Kutcher is surprisingly effective in his role as Green by wisely staying away from his “Punk’d” alter ego and truly attempting to portray a man who has only his heart to guide him through the difficulties of being one half of an interracial couple.

Mac also strays slightly from his usual alpha-male persona by making his character more vulnerable — yet brings down the house with some great in-your-face antics.

The remake sticks true to the original by attempting to evolve the cliched parent-suitor conflict by bravely touching on the subject of racial tension. It is so effective at points — especially during a dinner discussion — that it may make you squirm in your seat.

As stated in the film, “times have changed,” but the movie brings to light the fact that much of today’s racial acceptance is still quite tongue-in-cheek — everywhere from corporate America to the New Jersey suburbs.

Mac and Kutcher are wonderful at being each other’s ying and yang by expertly inducing laughs through respectable situational comedy and some great one-liners. The two stay true to reality by exploiting some of the same uncomfortable feelings one may find when meeting a significant other’s parents — only they take it to some humorous extremes that appropriately label the two as a dynamic duo.

In order to be successful in comedy — and meeting your partner’s parents — it takes good timing, something this film masters in its attempt to make light of our cultural differences and emphasize our ability to find love in someone — no matter their skin color.