Waiting to Exhale

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Waiting to Exhale
Directed by Forest Whitaker
Produced by Ronald Bass
Terry McMillan
Deborah Schindler
Ezra Swerdlow
Written by Terry McMillan (book and teleplay)
Ronald Bass (teleplay)
Starring Whitney Houston
Angela Bassett
Loretta Devine
Lela Rochon
Music by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds
Distributed by 20th Century Fox
Release date(s) December 22, 1995
Running time 127 min.
Country Flag of the United States United States
Language English
Budget $15,000,000
Gross revenue Domestic:
$67,052,156[1]
Worldwide
$81,452,156
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

Waiting to Exhale is a 1995 romance film which stars Whitney Houston and Angela Bassett and directed by Forest Whitaker. The movie was adapted from the novel of the same name by Terry McMillan and also stars Loretta Devine and Lela Rochon. The original music score was composed by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds. The story centers on four female friends living in the Phoenix, AZ area and their relationships with men and one another. All of them are "holding their breath" until the day they can feel comfortable in a committed relationship with a man.

The movie is notable for having an all-black cast. The success of the film proved that there is an audience for black movies. The LA Times called it a "social phenomenon".[2]

Contents

[edit] Plot summary

Savannah Jackson (Whitney Houston) is a television producer who holds on to the belief that one day her married lover (Dennis Haysbert) will leave his wife for her. Bernadine Harris (Angela Bassett) abandoned her own career and desires of having a catering business to raise a family. Her husband is now leaving her for a white woman. Robin Stokes (Lela Rochon) is the long-time mistress of Russell (Leon Robinson). After dumping him she has problems finding a decent man of her own. Gloria Matthews (Loretta Devine) is a beauty salon owner and single mother raising a teenage son. After years alone, she falls in love with a new neighbor, Marvin King (Gregory Hines).

[edit] Soundtrack

Full article: Waiting to Exhale (soundtrack)

The soundtrack to the film featured many African-American female artists. The #1 hit song "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)", sung by Whitney Houston, is on the soundtrack to this film, as well as the Top 5 singles "Not Gon' Cry" by Mary J. Blige, "Sittin Up In My Room" by Brandy, and the Top 10 single "Count On Me" by Whitney Houston and CeCe Winans.

[edit] Trivia

  • Director Forest Whitaker was the unanimous first choice of the film's producers and screenwriters.
  • Houston's role in the film bore a resemblance to the character she played in the music video to her single "Saving All My Love for You" - a woman having an affair with a married man.
  • Forest Whitaker stated in an interview with Ebony Magazine that Robin Givens and Halle Berry were among the women who auditioned for the role of Robin. After casting Houston and Bassett, he decided to go with relative unknowns for the other two roles, and the role of Robin was subsequently given to Lela Rochon.
  • A brief controversy involving Whitaker and HBO regarding the HBO drama Sex and the City ended with Whitaker ultimately winning an undisclosed settlement from the network. Whitaker claimed in an interview with US Weekly that Jessica Parker and HBO "stole my show and are trying to get me."
  • Although Whitaker had earlier directed an HBO drama called Strapped (1993) for which he received Best New Director honors at the Toronto Film Festival this film was his first job directing a full-length feature film.
  • The movie has been featured in two episodes of The Simpsons: All Singing, All Dancing, where the family were put on hold for it but were told "not to hold their breath", and E-I-E-I-(Annoyed Grunt), where it was mentioned in conversation.
  • The scene where Bernadine sets her husbands' personal belongings and car on fire was referenced in an episode of The Steve Harvey Show. Lydia's character becomes angry with "Bullethead" and throws his personal effects out of their shared locker. She is about to set them on fire with a lighter, and states "I'm about to go Angela Bassett and I don't have any lighter fluid." Ultimately, Steve intervenes to prevent this from happening.

[edit] Cast

[edit] Awards/Nominations

Angela Bassett
Angela Bassett

[edit] References

  1. ^ Box Office Mojo: Waiting to Exhale
  2. ^ Dutka, Elaine. "The Money's Where the Action Is; Movies: Big budgets and special effects push the film industry to yet another record performance". Los Angeles Times. May 22, 2006. December 31, 1996.

[edit] External links

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