How Stella Got Her Groove Back (1998)

Stella is a highly successful, forty-something San Francisco stock broker who is persuaded by her colorful New York girlfriend Delilah to take a well deserved, first-class vacation to Jamaica.

Director:

Kevin Rodney Sullivan

Writers:

Terry McMillan (novel), Terry McMillan (screenplay)

Stars:

Angela Bassett, Taye Diggs, Whoopi Goldberg

4 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Angela Bassett	...	Stella Payne
Taye Diggs	...	Winston Shakespeare
Whoopi Goldberg	...	Delilah Abraham
Regina King	...	Vanessa
Suzzanne Douglas	...	Angela
Michael J. Pagan	...	Quincy Payne
Sicily Johnson	...	Chantel (as Sicily)
Richard Lawson	...	Jack
Barry Shabaka Henley	...	Buddy
Lee Weaver	...	Nate
Glynn Turman	...	Dr. Shakespeare
Phyllis Yvonne Stickney	...	Mrs. Shakespeare
Denise Hunt	...	Ms. Thang
Lisa Hanna	...	Abby
James Pickens Jr.	...	Walter Payne

Storyline

Stella Payne (Angela Bassett) is a highly successful, forty-something San Francisco, California stock broker who is persuaded by her colorful New York City girlfriend Delilah Abraham (Whoopi Goldberg) to take a well deserved, first-class vacation to Jamaica. As she soaks in the beauty of the island, she encounters a strapping, young islander, Winston Shakespeare (Taye Diggs). His pursuits for her turn into a hot and steamy romance that forces Stella to take personal inventory of her life and try to find a balance between her desire for love and companionship, and the responsibilities of mother and corporate executive.

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Plot Keywords:

loss of job | best friend | family home | pet dog | immigrant | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes you have to break the rules to free your heart.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some sexuality

Did You Know?

Trivia

In March 2007, Terry McMillan sued her ex-husband Jonathan Plummer and his lawyer for $40 million, citing an intentional strategy to embarrass and humiliate her during the divorce proceedings. McMillan eventually won a judgment of intentional infliction of emotional distress, but had withdrawn the suit before the case went to trial, and Plummer was never ordered to pay the intended amount. On September 27, 2010, the two sat together with Oprah Winfrey on Oprah Winfrey to discuss their post-divorce relationship and partial reconciliation and both acknowledged that he fulfilled the role of boyfriend and husband before his coming-out, although McMillan stated that "he's not my BFF".

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Goofs

While Stella and Winston argue in the restaurant, the level of wine in her glass keeps changing.

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Quotes

Stella Payne: [eating breakfast] Something sure smells good.
Winston Shakespeare: It's my cologne, it's new.
Stella Payne: I meant the food.
Winston Shakespeare: Oh.
Stella Payne: [in her mind] I meant the cologne.

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Connections

References Booty Call (1997)

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Soundtracks

Row Row Row Your Boat
Traditional

User Reviews

Nice and lighthearted, but stay away from Jamaica.

It's typical of IMDb to have mindless action films earn an average of 7 or better, but for some reason a light film like this suffers from anti-romance, anti-female-lead bias that permeates this site. It is an enjoyable film with good music and the usual good acting from Angela Bassett. There are some good comedic moments, and good dialogue among the female friends in the movie. If you put aside the baggage of what happened with McMillan's real life marriage, you should like it.

Now that I've gotten my review out of the way, I have to say the one thing that bothered me about the film is that it makes Jamaica look like a great place to visit--when in fact it is an island guilty of gross human rights violations, where gay people live in fear for their lives and sexism is de rigeur. I cannot get past that simple injustice even when watching a movie, especially this one where a woman who could afford to go anywhere in the world chooses to give her travel dollars to the place that deserves them the least!

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 August 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

How Stella Got Her Groove Back On

Filming Locations:

1090 Rubio Street, Altadena, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$11,318,919, 16 August 1998

Gross USA:

$37,672,941

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$39,278,722

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

124 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1