The movie opens with a loving black family celebrating a birthday. After the credits, we see "Brooklyn 1980s", then the two sons and their friend playing with a video game that was a big present. The father says to stop playing with that game and go to bed. Of course, the boys don't go straight to bed; they find a dirty magazine.
Some things never change. At age 24, Bruce works for a record company, and his boss Karen, who is already disappointed in his performance, catches him sharing with co-workers another month of the same dirty magazine.
Bruce's brother Rick, age 25, runs a real-estate business and is about to marry Karen's sister Denise, but he is having doubts. One night he wants to go out with Bruce and the guys, while Denise would prefer that he stay home with her and plan the wedding. Bruce's girl also wants her man to stay home.
The guys talk about guy stuff, including how a man is no longer a man once he gets married. Eddie and James are more blue-collar than the brothers in their conversational style and outlook on life, and I got the impression they both make their living in a way that would keep them one step ahead of the cops. Denise, Karen and her friends have a girls' night themselves, which resembles the more pleasant scenes from "Waiting to Exhale", which I suffered through once for some odd reason. That movie is mentioned here.
The problems of Rick and Denise are just beginning. Will Rick go through with the wedding? If not, Tammy is another possibility for him, while Omar, a sensitive friend of one of Karen's co-workers, might be the right fit for Denise.
Rick and Bruce must also deal with the health problems of their elderly father, who is alone now after 47 years of marriage but seems happy considering the circumstances. The guys' father is quite a character and was well-played--he was my favorite person in the movie.
Through catfights, scheming, cheating and other soap-opera twists, the movie finally reaches a satisfying conclusion.
This is not really a comedy, but it does have a number of funny scenes. Overall, it seemed like a quality independent production and reminded me of Spike Lee's earlier work. There was plenty of good writing and acting, though this is not necessarily a movie a guy would choose unless his girlfriend or wife insisted he watch the movie with her. "We need to talk" is an expression used a lot by the women in talking to their men. That's not to say there isn't some material here that would appeal to guys. There are deep discussions about ethics, pleasing women, and the meaning of life. And James and Eddie are what women might consider jerks (Okay, maybe not James, as you'll see). Of course, women who want to cry will likely enjoy this, and they will need a supply of Kleenex.
If you don't see this on broadcast TV as I did, be warned that the language is strong. My sound went out a number of times when dirty words would have been appropriate. And these people do enjoy talking about donkeys. At least that could have been what they were referring to.
I was relatively happy with this.
