FilmBlather.com

"Did he have to take a number, or was the line moving briskly?"

Here's a movie written by people with a real emotional investment in their characters. Deliver Us From Eva, a sort of retelling of The Taming of the Shrew, is done right from beginning to end, crafted with meticulous care. This is an "urban" movie -- a crass euphemism for "black" -- but, much more so than last year's overrated Barbershop, it deserves to reach a wide audience. It's ultimately an inconsequential little ditty, but as it has no monumental ambitions, it is a delightful sit.

Director and co-writer Gary Hardwick (The Brothers) is onto something with the title character. Eva Dandridge (Gabrielle Union) is presented in the opening scenes as a man-eating bitch, always ready to provide statistics proving why her three sisters should do the opposite of what their men want. She is also apparently responsible for a murder, as asserted by the movie's dead narrator.

The three fellas, left out in the cold time and again due to Eva's helpful advice, decide they've had enough. They want Eva out of their lives for good, and are willing to go to potentially embarrassing lengths to accomplish that. One of them knows Ray (LL Cool J), a bachelor described as "the ultimate playa," and they hire the man to seduce Eva, get her to fall in love with him, move away with her and then dump her when she's out of their hair.

Well, it doesn't take a genius, right? Of course he falls in love with her, and she with him, and they're later faced with the unpleasant prospect of having to reconcile the fact that Ray was paid to date her. What's interesting here isn't the trite concept -- doesn't every romantic comedy nowadays have some variation on the "I was a bet?!" scene? -- but the unexpectedly thoughtful execution.

You see, this is Eva's story, not Ray's. She isn't merely a shrew who makes a magical transformation when the script requires it of her. She is a real woman, injured by former lovers, torn among the desire to enter a meaningful relationship, loyalty to her younger sisters, and a demanding career path. It means something to see her open up and cautiously embrace this new opportunity, and it means more than usual when we realize that she is being made a fool. In other words, there's genuine character development here.

I've long sung the praises of rapper-turned-actor LL Cool J, who exhibits a real screen presence and a sly wit even in his bit parts. This is his first serious role, and I don't think he's very far a way from being able to headline a major movie all by his lonesome. The discovery here, however, is Gabrielle Union (Bring It On), who has a surprisingly refined sense of comic timing and an impressive range. Had this movie been released some time other than early February, she might have been pushed for awards, but no one's memory ever goes back that far.

I probably could have done without the utterlly extraneous hairdresser character who can't keep her legs together, as well as the gay hairdresser working next to her. In fact, I could have done without the salon setting altogether -- do these women get their hair done every damn day? The film also has some pacing issues in its second and third acts, losing its rhythm by jumping rather erratically from one set of characters to another.

Despite these quibbles, Deliver Us From Eva will become a sleeper hit. It certainly deserves it. The execrable trailer makes the movie look typical and worthless, but Hardwick and his writers have transcended the marketing. It's not for the ages, but it's a pleasant surprise amidst the January/February movie doldrums.