Breakin' All the Rules (2004)

User Rating:

5.4/10   

Director:

Daniel Taplitz

Writer (WGA):

Daniel Taplitz (written by)

Release Date:

14 May 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

When it comes to getting dumped... He wrote the book.

Plot:

Inspired by his fiancée (who dumped him), a man publishes a break-up handbook for men, becoming a bestselling author in the process.

Plot Keywords:

Female To Male Foot In Crotch | African American | Bar | Dating | Dog

Awards:

4 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Fri. Oct. 24

7:00 PM

OXYGEN

Cast

Jamie Foxx	...	Quincy Watson
Gabrielle Union	...	Nicky Callas
Morris Chestnut	...	Evan Fields
Peter MacNicol	...	Philip Gascon
Jennifer Esposito	...	Rita Monroe
Bianca Lawson	...	Helen Sharp
Jill Ritchie	...	Amy
Samantha Nagel	...	Sandra / Executive Assistant
Grace Chan	...	Secretary
Danny Comden	...	Sam
Octavia Spencer	...	Stylist (as Octavia L. Spencer)
Heather Headley	...	Herself
Patrick Cranshaw	...	Mr. Lynch
Tate Taylor	...	Attendant
Bob Stephenson	...	Ticket Master

Also Known As:

The Break Up Handbook (USA) (working title)
The Sexpert (USA) (working title)
Untitled Jamie Foxx Comedy (USA) (working title)
Cómo romper con tu pareja (Spain) [es]
Quebrando as Regras (Brazil) [pt]
Rakkauden pelisäännöt (Finland) [fi]
Rompiendo todas las reglas (Argentina) (video title) [es]
Rupture mode d'emploi (France) (DVD title) [fr]

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sexual material/humor and language.

Runtime:

Argentina:85 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:L | Australia:M | Argentina:13 | Canada:PG | Finland:K-11 | Germany:6 | Singapore:PG | USA:PG-13 (certificate #40587)

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Screen Gems

Trivia:

During the making of this movie, Jamie Foxx had cut his hair for Ray (2004/I). So in the final scene, Foxx is wearing a wig, which is why his hair looks so much longer.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Quincy shows his work to Evan at his house, his sideburns switch from connected as a goatee to regular sideburns from shot to shot.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Getaway: Black Monday (2004) (VG)

Soundtrack:

Tipsy

Dumping a lover is hard to do

"Breaking all the Rules" looked promising just by having the talented Jamie Foxx in the lead role. As it plays on the screen, this comedy, directed by Daniel Tablitz, who also wrote the screen play, seems to have been produced on the strength of its star, or maybe someone in the studio decided that making it with a mostly black cast, had possibilities. This comedy could have been played by any cast of any color without making any dent in the genre.

The basic problem is the screen play. Do we care about these people? I don't think so. The running gag about Nicky resembling Halle Berry runs tired after the second time it's mentioned. Even the book that Quincy writes makes no sense.

Jamie Foxx is about the only pretext for spending almost an hour and a half with this film. He is an interesting performer no matter what he is doing. The beautiful Gabrielle Union is fine as Nicky, but there is no heat between Quincy and her. The rest of the cast struggles to make this comedy succeed.

Watch it at your own risk.