Think Like a Man

Think Like a Man is a 2012 American romantic comedy film directed by Tim Story, written by Keith Merryman and David A. Newman, and produced by Will Packer. It was based on Steve Harvey's 2009 book Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man. The film stars an ensemble cast, featuring Michael Ealy, Jerry Ferrara, Meagan Good, Regina Hall, Kevin Hart, Terrence J, Taraji P. Henson, Romany Malco, and Gabrielle Union.

Think Like a Man
Theatrical release poster
Directed byTim Story
Written by
  • Keith Merryman
  • David A. Newman
Based onAct Like a Lady, Think Like a Man
by Steve Harvey
Produced byWill Packer
Starring
CinematographyLarry Blanford
Edited byPeter S. Elliot
Music byChristopher Lennertz
Production
companies
Distributed bySony Pictures Releasing
Release dates
  • February 20, 2012 (2012-02-20) (PAFF)
  • April 20, 2012 (2012-04-20) (United States)
Running time
122 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$12 million[1]
Box office$96.1 million[1]

The film was released on April 20, 2012, by Screen Gems.[2] It received mixed reviews from critics, who complimented the film's humor, its soundtrack and the performances of the cast (particularly those of Good, Malco and Hart) but received criticism for being a "standard romcom".[3] The film was a commercial success, grossing $96.1 million against a $12 million budget. A direct sequel, Think Like a Man Too, was released on June 20, 2014, with the original cast returning, to negative reviews from critics but become a moderate commercial success.

Plot

The film follows four storylines, which each focus on one particular couple. They are titled:

  • "The Mama's Boy" vs. "The Single Mom"
  • "The Non-Committer" vs. "The Girl Who Wants the Ring"
  • "The Dreamer" vs. "The Woman Who Is Her Own Man"
  • "The Player" vs. "The 90 Day Rule Girl"

Each of the women are readers of Steve Harvey's book Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man. When the men learn that the women are reliant on Harvey's advice, they try to turn the tables on their mates, which later seems to backfire.

Cast

Six professional basketball players made cameo appearances as themselves:

Reception

Critical response

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 54% with an average score of 5.1/10, based on 102 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "In Think Like a Man, an otherwise standard rom-com is partially elevated by a committed -- and attractive -- cast, resulting in a funny take on modern romance."[4] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 51 out of 100 based on 30 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[5]

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times wrote that a major problem with the film is that it takes seriously the advice given in the book it is based upon, commenting that such an approach "might have worked as a screwball comedy or a satire, but can you believe for a moment in characters naive enough to actually live their lives following Steve Harvey's advice? The result is a tiresome exercise that circles at great length through various prefabricated stories defined by the advice each couple needs (or doesn't need)."[6] Ebert called the cast "superb" noting in particular the performances of Meagan Good and Kevin Hart.[6] Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly also complimented Good and Hart's performance, as well as Romany Malco's performance.[7] He ultimately gave the film a "B-" grade, writing that it is "so busy tracking courtship as if it were a science project that the bite-size love stories lack spontaneity."[7] In a positive review, Michael Phillips of the Chicago Tribune commended the film for "stick[ing] to a formula without falling prey to it" and commented that "its hangout factor is considerable, because the actors' charms are considerable."[8]

Box office

Think Like a Man grossed over $33.7 million during its opening weekend, an accomplishment which ended The Hunger Games' four-week run at the #1 spot at the U.S. box office.[1] The film remained on atop the competition during its second week, bringing in $17.6 million.[9]

As of June 24, 2012, Think Like a Man has earned $91,547,205 in both the United States and Canada, along with $4,523,302 in other countries, for a worldwide total of $96,070,507 on a production budget of $12.5 million.[10]

Soundtrack

The film's soundtrack includes songs performed by numerous artists, including Kelly Rowland, Jennifer Hudson, Keri Hilson, John Legend and Future.[11]

Think Like A Man: Music From & Inspired by the Film [12]
No.TitleWriter(s)Performer(s)Length
1."Think Like a Man"Rick Ross, Ne-Yo, Harmony Samuels, Al Sherrod Lambert, Courtney Harrell, Eric BellingerJennifer Hudson and Ne-Yo featuring Rick Ross4:01
2."Tonight (Best You Ever Had)"Allen Arthur, Christopher Bridges, Keith Justice, Miguel, Clayton Reilly, John LegendJohn Legend featuring Ludacris3:59
3."Need a Reason"Kelly Rowland, Lonny BerealKelly Rowland featuring Future and Bei Maejor4:16
4."Won't Make a Fool Out of You"Christopher T. Stewart, Johnta Austin, Kenneth CobyMarcus Canty4:13
5."Baby Be Mine"Rod TempertonQuadron4:17
6."That's the Way of the World" (Originally released in 1975)Maurice White, Charles Stepney, Verdine WhiteEarth, Wind & Fire5:45
7."Freedom Ride"Keri Hilson, Arden Altino, Olivier Castelli, Akene Dunkley, Jerry DuplessisKeri Hilson3:43
8."Shake That Jelly"Patrizio Pigliapoco, Christopher "Tito JustMusic" Trujillo, William WessonBilly Wes3:15
9."Same Ole BS"Gamble and Huff, Philip Cornish, Eric "Cire" Crawford, Kimberly Pate, Ronnie JacksonRaVaughn3:44
10."Fire"Brandon Hines, Antoine HarrisBrandon Hines3:47
11."Motion Picture"Future, Gary HallFuture4:04
12."Never Too Much" (Originally released in 1981)Luther VandrossLuther Vandross3:50
Total length:48:50

Production

Principal photography began On July 1, 2011, in Los Angeles, California & Culver City, California and ended on 5 September 2011.

See also

References
  1. "Think Like a Man (2012)". Box Office Mojo. Amazon.com. Retrieved July 30, 2012.
  2. "Think Like a Man Trailer, News, Videos, and Reviews". ComingSoon.net. Retrieved 2014-06-21.
  3. Think Like a Man, retrieved 2020-10-03
  4. "Think Like a Man (2012)". Flixster, Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  5. "Think Like a Man". CBS Interactive, Metacritic. Retrieved April 26, 2012.
  6. Ebert, Roger. "Think Like a Man". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved April 27, 2012.
  7. Gleiberman, Owen (April 25, 2012). "Think Like a Man". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 27, 2012.
  8. Phillips, Michael (April 19, 2012). "Think Like a Man movie review". Chicago Tribune. Chicago Tribune: Tribune Company. Retrieved 2012-04-29.
  9. Downey, Ryan J. "'Think Like A Man' Takes Box Office For Second Week". MTV News. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
  10. Goldberg, Stephanie. "'Think Like A Man' and the legacy of 'Love Jones'". CNN Entertainment. Retrieved 29 May 2012.
  11. "Keri Hilson, Kelly Rowland Join 'Think Like a Man' Soundtrack". Rap-Up. Retrieved April 28, 2012.
  12. Think Like a Man at AllMusic. Retrieved April 28, 2012
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