While this movie truly is bound to be more appealing to women than men, it is a touching story of four best friends. How they stick together and grow together through life's mistakes, joys, and bad taste in men. I love Angela Bassett and she is outstanding in this movie. The other 3 ladies, Whitney,Lela, and Loretta do great jobs too. This movie is filled with sweet moments, great laughter, and maybe some tears. Just a wonderful movie that shows what friendship is about. I have not read the book, but I have heard many times that the book is better... but hey thats true for almost every book turned movie. So all I know is I love this movie, and every time I watch it, it gives me great pleasure. Not too mention the soundtrack is fabulous! Whitney, Brandy, Babyface,Faith Evans,and Mary J Blige make the music in the film absolutely great.

Directed by Forest Whitaker and adapted from a smash best selling novel by Terry McMillan, WAITING TO EXHALE is a glossy, but one-sided look at the relationship between four strong black women and the various men in their lives. The film is one-sided because the screenplay presents most of the male characters as sexist, manipulative pigs without a redeeming characteristic in sight, but the sensitive direction and outstanding performances keep the rather lopsided story watchable. Whitney Houston made an impressive film debut as Savannah, an ambitious television executive caught in a dead-end affair with a married man (Dennis Haysbert). Angela Basset does Oscar-worthy work as Bernadine, a woman who has spent her life being the best wife and mother she knows how to be, who has her world rocked when her wealthy husband (Michael Beach) calmly announces one night before a formal dinner party that he's in love with someone else and wants a divorce. The scene where Bernadine gathers all her husband's stuff and makes a bonfire out of it in her driveway is one of the film's highlights. Lela Rochon plays Robin, a not-too-bright doormat who finds herself pregnant by a man she wants nothing to do with. Loretta Devine is fun as Gloria, a hairdresser who is divorced from her husband, who it turns out was gay, and is struggling to raise her son (Donald Faison) and tries to begin a relationship with a new neighbor (Gregory Hines). If you can accept the fact that in the world of these four women, all men are pigs, then this film can be very entertaining but the top-notch performances by the cast cannot be overlooked.

The movie is okay, mediocre might even be the word to describe it. I have to say that you can really tell who can act and who can't. Angela Bassett was brilliant in her portrayal of an angry, heart broken wife, whilst Whitney Housten seems rather emotionless throughout the film- and no i'm not only saying this because she's a singer.Furthermore, i don't understand why all black movies have to include such explicit sex! I mean the normal amount is good.. but this is too much.. I don't mean the frequency of it , but the way that sex is portrayed. It's bad because all it does is feed thriving stereotypes about black people which aren't necessarily true.

This is an absolutely wonderful movie. Waiting to Exhale stars Angela Bassett, Whitney Houston, Loretta Devine, and Lela Rochon. This movie is about four women who find strength through their rare and special friendship. One woman, Bernadine (Bassett) thought she had love in her life until she found out from her husband that he was leaving her for a white woman (Whoa, hello!! He told her this on New Year's Eve!! He's no gentleman there!), and got back at him. When I first saw the scene where she cleans out her husband's clothes closet (while throwing a screaming fit) and burns them in his car, I thought it was so funny. She really got back at him. There was another scene where she went to his workplace to talk to him by interrupting a meeting he was conducting, walking up to the white gal he's seeing, asks her if she can have a few minutes alone with him, and slapping her in the face in everyone's presence without waiting for an answer, and then goes off on him. Talk about getting revenge; she had guts!!! Gloria (Devine) was so sweet as the lady with her hairdressing place and trying to deal with her teenage son, and getting romantically involved with a man that moved in across the street. Robin and Savannah (Rochon and Houston) were the ones successful in business, but their love lives were down to almost nothing. I don't care what anyone thinks of this movie. It is truly worth watching. I think Whitney Houston was marvelous in her role as Savannah. The soundtrack album to this movie is okay; I only like the Whitney tracks, especially the first one Exhale (Shoop, Shoop), which has a neat easy listening sound to it. I DO NOT like the track done by TLC (Track 6: This is How it Works). That is an inappropriate song to listen to. I know what the lyrics of that song describe, and I won't get into it. Anyway, get this movie and prepare yourself for some laughter and a few tears here and there. If you want to get the soundtrack, too, that is fine. But don't try to get hooked on the TLC track, though!