Barnes & Noble

Having made an impressive showing in the movie adaptation of one Terry McMillan novel (Waiting to Exhale), Angela Bassett eagerly accepted -- and did a bang-up job with -- the title role in this glossy 1998 interpretation of another McMillan story. Stella is a gorgeous 40-year-old San Francisco stockbroker who successfully runs with the bulls of the financial world but finds herself confronted with a bear market in romance. While on vacation in Jamaica with her friend Delilah (played by a scene-stealing Whoopi Goldberg), Stella meets and falls for handsome med-school hopeful named Winston (Taye Diggs). Only problem: He's 20 years old -- just half her age. Director Kevin Rodney Sullivan milks this dilemma for all it's worth, playing up the predictable disapproval of Stella's family and friends. A melodramatic subplot involving Delilah's critical illness and hospitalization temporarily diverts attention from the love affair, but Sullivan steers the film back on course and brings it to a dramatically satisfying conclusion. How Stella Got Her Groove Back tells McMillan's story of a May-September romance with élan, but even more important, it features the beautiful Bassett in a dazzling tour de force. The film's production is documented in a featurette included on the DVD. Ed Hulse

All Movie Guide

Terry McMillan and Ron Bass wrote this screenplay based on McMillan's semi-autobiographical best-selling novel (over 2,000,000 copies in print before the release of this film). San Francisco stockbroker Stella (Angela Bassett), a 40-year-old divorcee, has a nice Marin County home and an 11-year-old son, Quincy (Michael J. Pagan). With Quincy off to see his dad, Stella and her best friend Delilah (Whoopi Goldberg) vacation in Jamaica, where she meets sexy, good-looking Winston Shakespeare (Taye Diggs). He's the man of her dreams in every way except one -- he's half her age. Even so, a romance develops. Grammy Award-winning songwriters Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis supervised the film's music and produced the R&B-slanted soundtrack album. Shown at the 1998 Urbanworld Film Festival (NY). Bhob Stewart

Product Details

• UPC: 024543020158
• Source: 20TH CENTURY FOX
• Region Code: 1
• Aspect Ratio: Theatre Wide-Screen (1.85.1)
• Presentation: Wide Screen
• Sound: Dolby Digital Surround, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
• Language: English
• Subtitles: English, Español
• Time: 2:04:00
• Sales Rank: 26,529

This DVD is also available as part of a box set:

• Heart & Soul Collection
• It's a Love Thang

Features:

DVD MENU