For me, I didn't see anyone or anything here but the delicious Gabrielle M. Union. It's not the idea that this movie is entirely not my taste, also it wasn't basically an entire movie for God's sake! I believe it was some TV flick, or TV 2 episodes with No attraction at all. Not to mention its stars as well. Suffice it to say the magical 2 names : (Morris Chestnut) and (Vivica A. Fox)…Feel the pain already ??!! Now here you are 2 leads that can play indeed (play Hell cleverly !). The first one is too unbearable like someone heavy setting happily on your chest, and the second just sucking out the remaining air in the same time ! Specifically whenever (Chestnut) is on-screen, in here or at any other work, I feel a waterfall of silliness bursts into my house to sink me and anyone watching! Did you see his photo on the movie's poster : DISASTROUS !Plus, this script wasn't as different as it wanted. The comedy was nonexistent or rather DEAD ! And the direction made it really tasteless. Actually the whole deal fails to make you interested (I left the movie at its first half hour then forced myself to rerun the rented videotape to complete it !). I hated the most a scene in which the classy businesswoman (played by Vivica A. Fox) walks at poor apartments and complains – to the screen ! – about how all the black people raise their voice in inappropriate way !?? Aside from Fox's too ridiculous, too provocative way at delivering those lines, I got extremely bugged out of this scene's message; I mean was it a gentle satire so the black people must keep their voices down (in their homes!?), or was it just a way to make clear how Arrogant character like Fox's is ?! To tell you the truth; for most of the time I felt that the movie's makers are the actual arrogant ones!Simply the success of (Waiting to Exhale) in (1995) launched a long series of black movies after (mostly romantic comedies or movies with social commentary) that deal with black people, having a cast of black actors. Few were good, and many were horrible. I don't need to clarify to what category (2 Can Play That Game) may belong ! These movies deal with the problems or the concerns of the American black community's middle or upper class ONLY. Perhaps as a late reaction to the way the black character always has been portrayed for years and years in Hollywood, or a way to make these movies in the contemporary Hollywood anyhow ?! So for a Blaxploitation fan this is maybe the closest you can get to The Anti-Blaxploitation ! Or maybe the most "white" black movie, and I do mean it in a bad way. My Love (Morris Chestnut) did another crime to humanity in the same year, from the same trend, named (The Brothers) which was like a manly version of (Waiting to Exhale) yet awful and unwatchable.Still the only watchable, amusing, and meaningful thing in this short dud is one hell of an intro for the SEXY Gabrielle Union walking unforgettably in tight outrageous red dress (she's the one who makes it outrageous I can tell you that !) while the dear camera is shooting her – in slow motion – from toes to head to observe how hot she is and how naked her navel too ! At that point I, of course with all the male viewers that got the chance to watch the movie on video; woke up, rejoiced, then pressed "rewind" to enjoy this rare moment again AND to assure that IT'S the same movie that I was watching ! Anyhow, Nothing of this heat wave continued, while Nothing of the whole movie eventually was as very good as it. Damn, even Gabrielle Union herself wasn't given fair screen time either ! All in all I think that one of the Board's messages, here on the IMDb, said it right : "Did anyone like this movie???" Enough commenting !

"Independence Day" actress Vivica A. Fox stars in the breezy, lightweight comedy "Two Can Play That Game" as a sexy but savvy senior advertising executive with a surefire ten-day strategy for manipulating errant boyfriends who step out on their women.This predictable but hilarious Anne Landers-like war-of-the-sexes situation comedy combines elements of Spike Lee's "She's Gotta Have It" (1986) and Forrest Whitaker's "Waiting to Exhale" (1995). As Shante Smith, Fox often turns to speak directly to the audience, breaking the fourth wall as it is called, to amuse us with insights in much the same way that Matthew Broderick did in John Hughes 1986 teen comedy "Ferris Bueller's Day Off." Shante addresses the camera while her companions appear blithely oblivious to these artificial asides. Although the humor occasionally qualifies as raunchy, first-time director Mark Brown has penned a harmlessly entertaining emotional epic that should keep both sexes laughing out loud at the antics of an exceptional ensemble cast featuring debonair Morris Chestnut and comic genius Anthony Anderson. Incidentally, Brown knows the romantic ropes rather well because he co-scripted director Lionel C. Martin's "How to Be a Player" (1997) about a playboy who gets his comeuppance from all the women who he cheated on at a party."The first time your man messes up," Shante advises, "no matter how minor the infraction, punish him. Punish him hard." Our heroine coaches a trio of soul sisters, Diedre (Mo'nique of "3 Strikes"), Karen (Wendy Raquel Robinson of "Miss Congeniality"), and Tracye (Tamala Jones of "Blue Streak") all of whom find themselves at the mercy of their errant men. Meanwhile, Shante endures none of their woes as she woos her boyfriend, Keith Fenton (Morris Chestnut of "The Brothers"), a successful, upscale, white-collar attorney. Moreover, Keith has never cheated on her. Shante's world shatters when Keith breaks a dinner date to work late at the office. Earlier, Shante had warned her friends that a man's most popular excuse for philandering is working late at the office.Nevertheless, Shante confides to the camera/audience that you never let your friends know if you are having trouble. Instead, Shante and her posse head off to their favorite restaurant nightspot where she catches Keith red-handed in the arms of another woman from his office. Predictably, Keith and his date scram, while an outraged Shante declares war on him with a foolproof ten-day plan to win him back. One of the best jokes here is the lingerie test. Shante tells her gal pals to buy lingerie a couple of sizes larger than their own and wedge it into the cushions of the couch at their boyfriend's apartment then extract the imitate item his presence and see what lies he conjures up on the spot to get himself out a jam.Shante isn't prepared for Keith's nimble-minded sidekick Tony (Anthony Anderson of "Me, Myself, and Irene") who furnishes shrewd guidance from a player's perspective. Sometimes, Tony manages to outsmart Shante, but he warns Keith that even the Central Intelligence Agency has nothing on a woman with a plan. Keith struggles desperately to maintain his composure, ringing up Shante who refuses to answer his phone calls. When she plays hard to get, rival businesswoman Conny Spalding (foxy Gabrielle Union of "Bring It On"), moves in on Keith, and an exasperated Shante pursues another guy. The irony of "Two Can Play That Game" is that Shante has a solid game plan, but she lacks the control over Keith that her girlfriends exert over their men. Furthermore, by the end of this nonsense, Shante learns a valuable lesson that she cannot control men with her rules.Nothing about "Two Can Play That Game" is, of course, remotely believable, but the jokes are fast and furious, and the cast looks like they enjoyed themselves to the utmost. Comedian Anthony Anderson steals every scene he has, while Whitney Houston's former husband Bobby Brown appears in a cameo as Karen's buck-toothed boyfriend. Black and white alike can enjoy this pre "Hitch" love comedy.

Just saw this movie on Family Channel last night. Interesting that it was on Family, but oh well. Not a deep movie, really just one plot - romance. Lighthearted and fun. The acting was pretty good, the scenes moved well - I liked the narrative from Shante, speaking to the audience. Not familiar with these actors, but thought they all did a good job.One cliché - the buxom, feisty girlfriend. She was good, and clichés do exist. Not too much detail about the girlfriends and their lives, they seemed more like props. But this wasn't a deep movie with multiple plots. They served their purpose well. Oh, another cliché - the Chinese man delivering an order. But that's a reality, too.There were some great lines. Some good writing. Good job, Mark Brown. One line that stands out: "You play more games than the NBA." (something similar) Wish I could remember the others! Hope this writer is writing more.I don't watch a lot of movies ... just stumbled upon this one. It was good to have a movie with all the principals being African-American. I'm not African-American (Caucasian), so I can't relate to some nuances. But romance is romance, regardless of race, ethnicity, etc. We've all been there!!!

Here's a romantic comedy that doesn't devolve into utter stupidity or becomed mired in inanity. It moves along at a nice pace, and though it's basically a silly movie, that's entirely forgivable since it never takes itself seriously. The plot line is wafer thin in that it tracks the breakup of two affluent African Americans, but what is very funny is the strategizing back and forth; Vivica Fox of course has, or thinks she has, all the right steps in playing this game, but Anthony Anderson as the adviser to Fox's boyfriend, helps him counter a number of her moves. The fact that Fox's character speaks directly to the character works as a plot device, it moves things along and really gives insights into the character that, inasmuch as she is always scheming whether with her boyfriends or girlfriends, is the only way we'd get that info. The fact that this is a "black" movie is almost entirely irrelevant--there are a couple of scenes where Anderson and Chestnut are going back and forth with terms like "preach it" from what sounds like a black church meeting, but that just adds to the charm, it avoids all those awful ghetto cliches that seem to infuse Martin Lawrence style movies. The movie is kind of a female version of a terrible Eddie Murphy vehicle from a decade ago called "Boomerang" about a womanizing ad executive, who has certain tactics when dealing with women. But it avoids the nasty aspects and plain stupidity of that movie. This one isn't going to win any awards, but its a pleasant time, and everyone knows how what's going to happen in the end, the fun is watching the two go back and forth with their silly tactics--one of the funnier scenes involves some half baked philosophizing about "transferrence of energy." This one is worth the time.