Two Can Play That Game (2001)

Director:

Mark Brown

Writer (WGA):

Mark Brown (written by)

Release Date:

7 September 2001 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Plot:

An arrogant career woman plays a series of heartless mind-games with her boyfriend to "put him in line," only to discover that he has a few tricks up his own sleeve.

Plot Keywords:

Black Professional | Black Romance | Breaking The Fourth Wall | Product Placement

Awards:

5 nominations

Cast

Vivica A. Fox	...	Shanté Smith
Morris Chestnut	...	Keith Fenton
Anthony Anderson	...	Tony
Gabrielle Union	...	Conny Spalding
Wendy Raquel Robinson	...	Karen
Tamala Jones	...	Tracey Johnson
Mo'Nique	...	Diedre
Ray Wise	...	Bill Parker
Bobby Brown	...	Michael
Dondre Whitfield	...	Dwain (as Dondré T. Whitfield)
David Krumholtz	...	Jason
Colby Kane	...	Calvin
Amy Hunter	...	Nita
Lee Anthony	...	Attorney in Elevator
Ian 'Blaze' Kelly	...	Diedre's Man

Also Known As:

How to Make Your Man Behave in 10 Days... Or Less (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for language including sexual dialogue.

Runtime:

90 min | Spain:93 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Netherlands:AL | Finland:K-15 | Singapore:NC-16 | Argentina:Atp | Germany:12 | Spain:13 | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Screen Gems

Goofs:

Continuity: The bouquet of flowers is unwrapped when Shante receives them at the beginning of the movie. When the top of the convertible opens, they are wrapped in plastic. When she arrives home, they are unwrapped again.

Quotes:

Tony: I don't need to know nothin' 'bout women when I got a momma, a cat, nine sisters and a gay uncle.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Salon (2005)

No pain, no gain.

In "Two Can Play That Game", an upwardly mobile Afro-Am professional woman, Shante (Fox), lays out the "rules" for playing the mating game as she takes the audience step by step, talking to the camera, through her own foible fraught relationship one rule at a time. Meanwhile her befuddled boyfriend (Chestnut) gets his own dose of rules and countermeasures from a know-it-all best friend (Anderson). The 95% comedy in this lively little romp comes from the interaction of the pair of protagonists with their kookie friends. The 5% romance comes at the end when the flick finally gets real. Fun stuff which gracefully straddles the black/white divide and avoids "ghetto", this flick will likely appeal most to females, particularly African-American females. (C+)