May
14, 2004 | A cleverly concocted hybrid of conventional romantic
comedy and mistaken-identity farce, Breakin' All the Rules is
fresh, fleet and funny. Credit writer-director Daniel Taplitz for keeping
things light and bright while he spins a scenario of misread signals,
rash assumptions, self-defensive feints and self-serving deceits. And
while you're tossing out kudos, save a couple for Jamie Foxx and Gabriel
Gabrielle Union, the engaging and attractive lead players in this playful
entertainment.
The
seriously complicated funny business begins when Quincy Watson (Foxx),
an L.A. magazine executive, is unceremoniously dumped by Helen (Bianca
Lawson), his flighty fiancée. His blue mood turns a few shades
darker when his boss, timorous Phillip Gascon (Peter MacNicol), assigns
Quincy the messy task of downsizing the magazine's staff. (After reading
far too many stories about disgruntled ex-employees, Phillip wants to
avoid any risk of violent retribution.) Quincy decides to quit rather
than serve as a corporate hatchet man. But he takes his "employee
termination" research, adds it to his first-hand knowledge of romantic
rejection - and scribbles an angry screed that profitably evolves into
a best-selling Breakup Handbook.
The
how-to tome is filled with practical pointers for anyone who wants to
avoid unpleasant scenes, or homicidal attacks, while severing ties with
significant others. Among the most important rules: Announce the breakup
at his or her place, so he or she won't leave home to follow you and
try to change your mind. On the other hand, if the person is very emotional,
or possibly psychotic, end the relationship in a public place - preferably
one with lots of security, like a bank or a post office.
Phillip
- who publishes the Breakup Handbook under his magazine's imprimatur
- seeks private breakup lessons from Quincy to rid himself of Rita (Jennifer
Esposito), an alluringly leggy gold-digger who won't take no (or good-bye)
for an answer. Evan (Morris Chestnut), Phillip's commitment-averse cousin,
also requests help when he mistakenly deduces that Nicky (Union), his
current girlfriend, is ready to dump him.
One
thing leads to another as the movie gains momentum. Quincy meets Nicky
in a fashionable lounge and, without knowing who she is, falls for her.
Nicky knows who Quincy is - and, more important, what he has written
- but gives him a fake name so she can divine his motives (and, more
important, discern his cousin's intentions). Meanwhile, Rita learns
about the breakup tutelage that Quincy is providing for Phillip, and
vows to win the author over to her side. But when she arrives unannounced
at Quincy's house, she mistakes Evan for Quincy. And Evan makes little
effort to reveal his true identity after Rita starts to express herself
nonverbally.
Inconvenient
returns, ill-timed arrivals and overheard telephone messages are just
a few of the contrivances Taplitz employs as he keeps his movie moving
at a pleasingly brisk clip. The humor isn't always sophisticated - an
incontinent dog also figures into Taplitz's bag of tricks - but the
dialogue is genuinely witty more often than not, and the actors race
through their paces with amusing élan.
In
his first official turn as a full-fledged romantic lead, Foxx strikes
the perfect balance of frisky mischievousness and comic consternation.
Better still, he brings out the best in Union, who once again evidences
(as she did in Deliver Us from Eva) impressive range and star
presence while coming off smart and sexy, feisty and formidable.
Chestnut
makes all the right smooth moves as Evan, while MacNicol and Lawson
take a broader-is-funnier approach that stops well short of outright
cartoonishness. And even though her role is more caricature than character,
Esposito brings surprising emotional resonance to a revealing scene
in which Rita matter-of-factly acknowledges her diminishing shelf life
as a sexy siren.