Fox Searchlight’s Just Wright is a star vehicle for Queen Latifah (Chicago) and the affable actress makes the most of it, playing a wider range of emotions than usual and having fun an in old-fashioned motion picture that, like Hollywood’s Golden Age movies, breezily mixes drama and comedy. The sports-themed story is a love triangle. Latifah, one of Hollywood’s brightest stars, is ugly duckling Leslie Wright, a physical therapist pushing past 30, driving a beater, and tired of being treated like one of the boys. Her dad (expressive James Pickens, Jr.) understands and loves his daughter, but her mother (Pam Grier) is as warm and maternal as an NBA groupie. Speaking of which, she has to compete with her godsister, a tramp played by attractive Paula Patton (better in Precious), whose goal is to manipulate a man into marriage. The man whom she designates, played by an actor known as Common, is a professional athlete and we all know what that means. But this player’s no player, in fact, he’s a gentleman, a civilized man, and Common’s performance is one of the most impressive in pictures this year. He is matched by the sensual and easygoing Queen Latifah, who is developing roles (and movies) such as this and is always a treat to watch on screen. Their chemistry is amazing and, thankfully, director Sanaa Hamri doesn’t always go for the joke. Watching the full-figured gal match up against the golddigger for a man who may actually be worth pursuing is surprisingly entertaining. Cashing in means dodging everything but the kitchen sink (nice to see Phylicia Rashad as Common’s tough-minded mother) but the payoff really scores.
