Two Can Play That Game (2001)

This is a neat little romantic comedy that is based on the battle of the sexes when the man sorta steps out a bit one night and there is plenty of plotting to see who suffers the consequences. What really works here is a technique that is not always done well in films -- the main character "narrating" the story line.Vivica Fox plays the professional woman who gives the audience advice on how to keep a man (attorney Morris Chestnut) at heel. Chestnut, however, is being coached by his colleague (Anthony Anderson) as to how to take charge of the situation. As you might guess, they do reconcile, but how they get to that point is all the fun.Vivica A. Fox, who I can take or leave depending on the production, does very nicely here. Morris Chestnut displays a real talent for light comedy here; frankly, he's one of my favorites, although I usually think of him more in terms of dramas. A real plus is the best friend Anthony Anderson...funny as heck here, but also at his pudgiest! It ain't Shakespeare, but it's a fun and entertaining film that's all in good taste.

Come On People, This movie was fun for me. I'm not for girlie movies but Vivica Fox happens to be one of my favourite Black Actresses and she "SHONE" in this simple but classy role!For the brothers out there dissing her, don't you wish you were the one slamming your girlfriend on your desk during lunch. She did what some smart women don't do, she planned and we(hate)her for being that smart.Hey the babe didn't want to lose and her boyfriend was beginning to cheat on her, when you've got it all like THAT!! what more do you need? like Shante says men are like dogs, "you need to leash them" and her boyfriend proves her right.Remember nice girls & boyz finish last.Shante went overboard in her planning but in real life, her boyfriend when they get back together would respect her for it!! All of us guys like a woman who knows what she is doing and who can work around us so all we really have to is bring home the bacon.Well! Wake Up Y'all!!!This movies sizzles with excellent chemistry, laidback humor and on the spot comic delivery.Fox, Chestnut and Anthony Anderson deliver standout performances !!! Not Oscar worthy but classic and enduring.I'll be watching this movie 10 years from now and still having a swell time. 7/10...

This movie had the potential to do something great, but failed. Vivica Fox was decent in her first starring role (was it a starring role?) as Shante. She is a great actress who doesn't get great roles (like most black actresses) but she put accurate effort into the character. The problem was that the movie relied too heavily on Shante's in-your-face-dialogue. And the game itself was a bit too farfetched. Of course women play games, but the lengths Shante went to just to teach Keith a lesson wasn't realistic. And is it just me or was practically everybody from The Brothers in this movie? (Morris Chestnut, Tamala Jones, Gabrielle Union). Good note - Monique was hilarious in her role as she should be. I did like this movie, but it would be nice to see a black movie that doesn't always rely on humor and battle of the sexes-type themes. What I would give to see a serious movie about African-Americans again. Another Soul Food-esque film would be excellent.

In "Two Can Play That Game", an upwardly mobile Afro-Am professional woman, Shante (Fox), lays out the "rules" for playing the mating game as she takes the audience step by step, talking to the camera, through her own foible fraught relationship one rule at a time. Meanwhile her befuddled boyfriend (Chestnut) gets his own dose of rules and countermeasures from a know-it-all best friend (Anderson). The 95% comedy in this lively little romp comes from the interaction of the pair of protagonists with their kookie friends. The 5% romance comes at the end when the flick finally gets real. Fun stuff which gracefully straddles the black/white divide and avoids "ghetto", this flick will likely appeal most to females, particularly African-American females. (C+)