Waiting to Exhale

Overview

"Forest Whitaker's adaptation of Terry McMillan's Waiting to Exhale comes to DVD with a widescreen transfer that preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1. Closed-captioned English soundtracks are rendered in both Dolby Digital 5.1 and Dolby Digital Surround, and a French soundtrack has also been recorded in Dolby Digital Surround. English and Spanish subtitles are accessible. Supplemental materials include the original theatrical trailer. The film looks and sounds great, although 20th Century Fox could have done more with the extras on this release."

Product Details

Release Date:	03/06/2001
UPC:	0024543020165
Original Release:	1995
Rating:	R
Source:	20Th Century Fox
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Letterbox]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, Dolby Digital Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	2:04:00
Sales rank:	41,321

Special Features

Closed Caption;Widescreen format (Aspect ratio: 1.85:1); Interactive menus; Scene selection; Original theatrical trailer ; Languages: English 5.1 surround; English Dolby® surround; French Dolby® surround; Subtitles: English; Spanish

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Whitney Houston	Savannah
Angela Bassett	Bernadine
Lela Rochon	Robin
Loretta Devine	Gloria
Gregory Hines	Marvin
Dennis Haysbert	Kenneth
Mykelti Williamson	Troy
Michael Beach	John Harris Sr.
Wesley Snipes	James Wheeler (uncredited)
Leon	Russell
Donald Adeosun Faison	Tarik
Wendell Pierce	Michael
Jeffrey D. Sams	Lionel
Jazz Raycole	Onika
Brandon Hammond	John Harris Jr.
Kenya Moore	Denise
Lamont Johnson	Joseph
Wren T. Brown	Minister,Person at Hermosa Table
Theo	On Air D.J.
Ken Love	D.J. at the Hermosa
Graham Galloway	Fireman
Starletta DuPois	Savannah's Mother
Shari L. Carpenter	Savannah's Assistant
Thomas R. Leander	Interviewer
Cordell Conway	Person at Hermosa Table
Lee Wells Jr.	Person at Hermosa Table
Delaina Mitchell	Tarik's Girl Friend
Luis Sharpe	Herbert
Joseph S. Myers	Security Guard at John's Office
Ezra Swerdlow	Wild Bill
Ellin La Var	Hairdresser
Patricia Anne Fox	Customer at Hair Salon
Wally Bujack	Judge
Giancarlo Esposito	Tarik's Father (uncredited)
Kenneth Babyface Edmonds	Composer

Technical Credits

Ron Bass

Terry McMillan

Forest Whitaker	Director
Ron Bass	Executive Producer,Producer,Screenwriter
Jaki Brown-Karman	Casting
Thomas C. Ford	Special Effects
Rawn Hutchinson	Stunts
Terry McMillan	Executive Producer,Screenwriter
Deborah Schindler	Producer
Brandon Sebek	Stunts
Ezra Swerdlow	Producer

Editorial Reviews

Forrest Whitaker's film version of Terry McMillan's best-seller about the romantic woes of four African-American women is an entertaining soap opera. Each of these middle- to upper-middle-class women (Whitney Houston, Angela Bassett, Lela Rochon, and Loretta Devine) have reason to bewail the quality of men they've been involved with, and here they give vent to their anger. Whitaker's film gives these women plenty of room to stretch out, some might say too much. The film has some wonderful moments, such as Bassett burning her rich husband's clothes when he dumps her, and some hilarious riffs on their various boyfriends' sexual peccadillos, but there are also swatches of banality that could easily have been cut. None of the relationships of the women are probed in depth, and, appropriately, most of the male characters exist only to illustrate a point. Among the few exceptions is Gregory Hines, who has a nice turn as a laid-back handyman who hooks up with Devine. Despite their problems with men, the film is really a backhanded tribute to both the independence and sustaining friendship of these four women.