The Best Man' features a wealth of talent
By Cynthia Tom
Special to the Daily Forty-Niner
In his latest feature film release, Taye
Diggs proves once again that he is, indeed, "The Best Man."
With recurring themes of love, fidelity,
trust, friendship and betrayal, this collaborative work of a group of talented
young actors promises to appeal to a wide-range of audiences and emotions.
Diggs portrays Harper Stewart, a promising
novelist whose soon-to-be-released work, "Unfinished Business," has commanded
the attention of even Oprah Winfrey's Book-of-the-Month program. As the
plot unfolds, it becomes clear that Stewart has a bigger audience than
the world to worry about: six of his closest friends.
Having based his latest book on their lives,
personalities and secrets, Stewart feels the tension rise when Jordan Armstrong
(Nia Long), a career-oriented television producer and personal friend of
Stewart's, obtains an advance copy of his book.
Slated to serve as best man at the wedding
of pals Lance (Morris Chestnut) and Mia (Monica Calhoun), Stewart joins
the wedding party along with Murch (Harold Perrineau), an almost-too-nice
guy, Quentin (Terrence Howard), a womanizing instigator, Robin (Sanaa Lathan),
Stewart's girlfriend and Armstrong.
Stewart's poor veiling of actual events
is quickly recognized and the film's seven main stars are pulled through
a whirlwind of events as old flames are rekindled, secrets are spilled
and anger is flared.
One of the highlights of the film is the
romance-element between Long's and Diggs' characters.
Another highlight is the commendable performances
by Melissa DeSousa and Regina Hall as Shelby and Candy, respectively.
Shelby is Quentin's overbearing girlfriend who is hardly a favorite with
the other characters and entertainingly portrayed by DeSoussa. Hall shows
diversity in her role as Candy, and gives a convincing performance that
wins audience affection despite minimal on-screen time.
In addition to comic relief, "The Best
Man" has many dramatic moments that allow audiences to connect emotionally
with the film's characters.
Calhoun delivers an angelic portrayal of
her character and Howard's becomes the one audiences love to hate. Likewise,
Long and Lathan masterfully solicit audience empathy.
Director Malcom D. Lee's feature film debut,
"The Best Man" is an good film overall. What weaknesses "The Best Man"
has, however, are not due to bad material, but to the usage of what good
content it has.
For example, the film contains many components
of a great film, but lacks the fluidity. As the film successfully appeals
to audiences' senses of humor, compassion and anger, each individual element
seems fragmented and independent of the others, never culminating into
a bigger design.
Abrupt shifts in mood that take place between
short scenes and do not allow audiences enough time to let desired effects
set in, making the characters and storyline difficult to embrace and even
a little hard to understand.
An advance screening of "The Best Man"
was held in the USU on Tuesday. Co-star Morris Chestnut, once a Long Beach
City College student, was present to answer audience questions.
"I like to speak to audiences because I
know they're interested in knowing more about the film and actors," Chestnut
said.
"The Best Man" is rated-R and scheduled
for wide-release on Friday. |
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