Think Like A Man Too
(Rated C)
Cast: Kevin Hart, Regina Hall, Taraji P. Henson, Michael Ealy
Genre: Romantic comedy
Dwight's rating:
Picture this: You're on a beautiful Bahamian beach. It's a bright, sunny day, not too hot, and nary a cloud is in the sky. A gorgeous supermodel saunters by in a skimpy bikini. She is glistening in the sun, simply glowing as she decides to stretch out on the sand just feet away. You can't help but stare. She looks back at you. She smiles. Then, oh, the horror! She has no teeth!
The new romantic comedy, "Think Like A Man Too" has a similar effect. There's a drop-dead gorgeous cast, and a glitzy backdrop (Las Vegas), but it's got no teeth -- no depth, no bite, and surprisingly, very few laughs.
This sequel to 2012's "Think Like A Man" picks up where the original leaves off. It follows four interconnected and diverse men, whose love lives are shaken up by the ladies they're pursuing. In the original, the ladies discovered (comedian, writer, game show and talk show host) Steve Harvey's book, "Act Like a Lady, Think Like A Man" -- on which both films are based -- and turned the tables on the men. Here, the various pairings are all back, and heading to Vegas for the wedding of one of the couples. The girls and guys split into separate groups for the bachelorette and bachelor parties, respectively.
On that premise alone, this film falters. If you've seen any ensemble romantic comedy, any comedy set in Vegas, any TV show with a Vegas episode, or even just imagined going to Sin City, then you've seen this movie. There's not one original thought.
Compounding the problem is that so many members of this cast have already appeared together in movies released just this year (Kevin Hart, Michael Ealy and Regina Hall in "About Last Night"), or in movies with similar tones (Wendi McLendon-Covey, "The Single Mom's Club," also released this year). It seems so awfully familiar, and not just because it's a sequel.
The weak script and story line utilizes all the typically unimaginative conventions of modern romantic comedies: the in-law from hell, the often overwrought "dramatic" moment that brings all the angst -- usually stemming from some "dark secret" that threatens to derail the relationship, or the sickening cultural stereotypes that lead to the eventual transformation of an ugly duckling into a swan, or nerd to cool guy. Yawn!
We know from their previous bodies of work that this attractive cast is also exceptionally talented. But there's little evidence of it here. Ultimately, the big names and many cameos are all wasted.
Surprisingly, the biggest disappointment is Mr. Box Office himself, Kevin Hart. I've previously raved about Hart, who, including this release, has had three number-one movie hits this year alone. He was the only reason to watch the pathetic "Ride Along". And he and Hall were simply spectacular together in the enjoyable "About Last Night".
But here, every single time he opens his mouth, his character Cedric is so obnoxious, so annoying, so tiring. Making matters worse, he's the film's narrator! The yammering is like a little dog constantly yapping. Toward the end, as the whole Vegas trip heads to ruin, one of the characters begs Cedric to just stop. I was hoping for someone to say that with the first 10 minutes!
Hart, and the rest of the cast, especially Hall, and particularly the excellent Taraji P. Henson and McLendon-Covey, who is poised for both movie and television superstardom, deserve much better.
I'm beginning to think Hollywood might seriously want to consider resting the romantic comedy genre for a while, especially those with large ensembles. They have probably run their course, like the once-ubiquitous Western. With the latter, these days we seem to see only about one every other year. And for the most part, the quality and complexity of these films have generally improved. While they're at it, perhaps there should be a moratorium on movies set in Vegas too, for goodness sake!
Still, "Think Like A Man Too" is not as painful as last year's tedious "Best Man Holiday". However, that film was at least able to elicit emotion out of me (disgust). This one inspires only apathy.
Nevertheless, it is summer in The Bahamas, and if it's not 90-plus degrees outside, it's probably raining. So if you have nothing else to do, why not -- but as I've said before, if only we could watch some of these movies in mute. It's enough to make one think watching a supermodel on the beach without teeth wouldn't be so bad after all.

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