Is
it too early for other filmmakers to try and copy the success of Tyler
Perry? Obviously not as "Jumping the Broom" shows it is already
happening, which is not a bad thing in these circumstances plus it stars
Loretta Devine, a Perry (and my) favorite.

The
screenplay by Elizabeth Hunter and Arlene Gibbs looks at two different
classes in the African American community. Loretta, the single mother of
the groom played by Laz Alonso, is a middle class Brooklyn postal worker while Angela Bassett and Brian Stokes Mitchell are the wealthy parents of the bride, Paula
Patton, who are giving the fairy tale wedding at their palatial estate
on Martha's Vineyard.

Aside from
the parents meeting for the first time, and the two women not hitting
it off at all, and their friends from different classes clashing, there
is also the humor of the bride and groom withholding sex until the
wedding night.

There
are a lot of characters involved, social issues lightly touched upon,
drama, comedy, satire, an older woman and a younger man, not to forget a
family having secrets. The director, Salim Akil, handles the large cast of veterans and newcomers with ease knowing when and where to aim the camera. He lets Bassett and Devine go at it as the pros they are, allows the young lovers to tackle the
problems that come along with having strong mothers and gets into the
joys and problems of the invited guests from both sides of the family.

You
know there are going to be problems when the mother of the groom
berates her son for not meeting her when they arrive on the Vineyard
and, instead, is met by a car and driver supplied by the mother of the
bride and you are not let down.

'Jumping the broom' refers to a custom that black slaves practiced and Devine's family has passed down and now wants it to take place at the wedding while Bassett tells her that her family owned slaves.

The
production values are first rate and the picture has a glow from  the
surroundings, the cast and, oh yes, both the male and female 'eye
candy'. As most new directors do Salem Akil has two too many endings.

Did I fail to mention that I cried like a baby towards the end? That's just me!