"Just Wright" - in theaters

I was eager to see this film, mostly because I really like whenever Common is in a movie (i.e. "Smoking Aces", "Date Night", etc.). I also enjoy Queen Latifah, so needless to say I was sold from the get-go.

The focus of the film is on Latifah's character, Leslie Wright, an unlucky-in-love physical therapist, who just bought a fixer-upper house, has loving yet meddling parents who live close by, and a cousin (Paula Patton) who is taking advantage of her hospitality. Leslie is a self-proclaimed Nets fanatic, and one night after driving home from a game, she meets the star player, Scott McKnight (Common) at a gas station. They exchange banter and he ends up inviting her to his birthday party. She brings Morgan, the cousin (whose goal in life is to become a ball-player's wife), and before you know it, Morgan and Scott are engaged.

Things go great for awhile, but then McKnight gets injured, and the Nets might not re-up his contract if he's not in shape for the play-offs. Morgan decides that Leslie is just the person to fix him up, haves her move into their house, and then Morgan promptly leaves Scott because she "just can't take it anymore". So not only is poor Common injured, he's also a jilted lover. It's a bad head-space to be in when you're trying to recover from surgery.

The rest of the movie pretty much goes as planned for a romantic comedy, but the movie itself doesn't feel generic. I think I liked this movie so much because I personally identified with Queen Latifah's character, so I was really rooting for her. Plus, she was a strong, independent woman who was still open to the possibility of love, which is tough to find in today's cinema. She made you think that even if she didn't find somebody that she would still be okay. And I really appreciated that message in today's romantic comedy market.

So on the CWeave scale, I rate this movie a solid 8. It was funny and heart-warming, and I don't think that it's getting the credit that it deserves.