The Best Man Holiday *** (2013, Morris Chestnut, Monica Calhoun)

Fifteen years after The Best Man, the cast and characters return for this belated sequel, which is a comedy, a soap opera and a tear-jerker as well. The excuse writer-director Malcolm D Lee comes up with is that Morris Chestnut’s Lance and Monica Calhoun’s Mia are bringing together the group of old college friends to celebrate Christmas. It comes as a surprise only to them that the old rivalries and romances are easily reignited.

Lee redeems himself for Undercover Brother (2002) and Scary Movie 5 with his surprisingly pleasing, fresh and charming romantic comedy drama.

Laughs and wit mix with sentimentality, religion and tears. It’s a tricky thing to pull off, but Lee does it in an effective package, with its alternately funny and poignant dialogue and its skilled performances from a group of winning actors.

Taye Diggs, Terrence Howard, Harold Perrineau, Sanaa Lathan, Nia Long, Melissa De Sousa and Regina Hall also reprise their roles from the 1999 film, along with the supporting cast.

Howard says: ‘I get teary-eyed thinking about it because there’s some tragedy in it. The Best Man Holiday shows where people go, whether they’re doing the right thing or the wrong thing, and how much we need each other within our community.’

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(C) Derek Winnert 2014 Classic Film Review 1177

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