How Stella Got Her Groove Back MPAA Rating: R Entertainment: +2 1/2 Content: -2 1/2

At age 40, Stella (Angela Bassett) seems to have it all. As a high-salaried stock broker, she is able to afford all the luxuries of life. She is a dedicated single African American mother and a devoted sister and friend. But lately, she's lost her passion for life or as her sisters would say "Stella's lost her groove". For what seems like forever, Stella has been responsible and has forgotten how to have fun. But Delilah (Whoopi Goldberg), Stella's outrageous friend, has the antidote, a vacation in Jamaica. There Stella can forget about her job, her demanding sisters and being the perfect mother. So Stella accompanies Delilah to Jamaica, where she is immediately attracted to a 20 year old Jamaican named Winston (Taye Diggs). And what begins as a vacation fling quickly turns into something more when Winston returns to America and moves in with Stella. It's not long before the 20 year age difference begins to cause problems. Viewers will find themselves laughing one minute and drawn into the characters the next, giving the film fairly broad audience appeal.

HOW STELLA GOT HER GROOVE BACK is a sensual love story that crosses the boundaries of society's acceptable relationships. What would a 40 year old woman want with a 20 year old man is the question asked over and over again. And in this film, the woman simply wants to be loved by him. However, love seems to get confused with sex. Several times the women in this film make it known that they are looking for one night stands. Pre-marital sex is not only condoned, but promoted. When Stella's sister tells her she is making a mistake by sleeping around, she is bad-mouthed. There are several explicit sex scenes where the only nudity includes male rear nudity . But most surprising is a pajama party in which most of the women disrobe and dance topless. In addition to the nudity, there is an abundance of obscenities, including 13 f and s words. Unfortunately, how Stella gets her groove back makes this film unacceptable viewing.

Preview Reviewer: Sherry Oswald
Distributor: 20th Century Fox Film Corp., P.O. Box 900, Beverly Hills, CA 90213