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 | Someone just has to say this. When this movie was filmed in '97 (it was released in '98), Angela Bassett was barely 39 and Taye Diggs was almost 26. That is HARDLY the massive, upsetting, life-altering age difference suggested by the script or the novel it was based on. Furthermore, Angela Bassett is one of the most beautiful women in Hollywood (or anywhere for that matter), totally buff, and could probably pass, easily, for 28 or 29. On the other hand, Taye Diggs, a very handsome guy, is no kid. He's a big guy, and mature looking and acting. I am sure he could have been cast easily in a part for a 30 or 35 year old. So there is no discernable or meaningful age difference here and that queers the entire premise of the movie! Not to mention, just to confuse things more, Digg's character is shown to be from an affluent, educated family and headed for medical school. His work as a Jamaican "pool boy" is just a summer job. This renders the whole concept a total cheat. It really would be shocking (and manipulative) if a rich, middle-aged woman from the US took sexual advantage of an uneducated young boy from a third world country. You'd see the sexual exploitation right off. It's so muffled here that we are drowning out any real thoughtfulness with our cries of "you go, girl!" A sobby subplot (very unbelievable) with Whoppie Goldberg addes nothing to the mix. It is quite interesting how our culture accepts romances with older men/younger women without so much as a blink, but let a gorgeous fit woman in early middle age have a slightly younger boyfriend, and it's supposed to be a big deal. It isn't. And this movie isn't much of anything. Try making a movie about the above issue (why it's OK for an old geezer to take a young trophy wife). That might be a challenging flick. In short: a waste of film, except you get to watch Angela Bassett which is worthwhile anytime. |