'About Last Night': Another date movie with too much talking
Please note: This article is published as an archive copy from Philadelphia City Paper. My City Paper is not affiliated with Philadelphia City Paper. Philadelphia City Paper was an alternative weekly newspaper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The last edition was published on October 8, 2015.
[Grade: B-] No one here's attempting to rechisel the date-movie wheel, but this one's only occasionally cheesy spirit begets some refreshing real-talk results.
City Paper grade: B-
Aside from swapping out a foursome of sharp African-American actors for the Caucasian yups who ruled the Brat Pack-dominated About Last Night..., Steve Pink doesn't tinker much with the bones of the 1986 original. It's still about well-to-do singles who talk more than they think, and it's spread thick with the calculated vulgarity required to turn a David Mamet play cinematic. No one here's attempting to rechisel the date-movie wheel, but this one's only occasionally cheesy spirit begets some refreshing real-talk results. Fresh off a wild first encounter with new flame Joan (Regina Hall), motor-mouthed Bernie (Kevin Hart) introduces his best friend Danny (Michael Ealy) to Joan's shy roommate, Debbie (Joy Bryant). Coupled off, the friends begin wrestling with the nuances of modern monogamy by juggling work, sex, jealousy and commitment in a group performance that's thankfully a little more sweet than schmaltzy. Hart and Hall's crass one-upsmanship could float a feature on its own, but that leaves Ealy and Bryant stuck looking pretty, their relationship a series of stares and sighs overshadowed by crowd-pleasing staccato shouts. The cast (and the R rating) should be credited for side-stepping many common rom-com traps, but at the end of the day they're still stuck in a rom-com.
