Breakin' All the Rules

Predicated on misunderstandings (but not the kind that require morons for main characters) and manipulation (but not the kind that considers a misogynist's apology to be a happy ending), Breakin' All the Rules is a shrewdly elaborate romantic comedy roundelay of cross-coupling that's kicked off when a men's magazine editor (Jamie Foxx) channels his own misery over being dumped into writing a bestselling "how-to" tome for stage-managing a breakup. Soon a commitment-phobic pal (hunky Morris Chestnut) and an uptight former boss (Peter MacNicol from Ally McBeal) recruit Foxx to help them shake loose the women in their lives. But Foxx falls for Chestnut's girlfriend (gorgeous, comedically game Gabrielle Union), and Chestnut falls for MacNicol's gold-digger (sexy-sly Jennifer Esposito), leading to cleverly convoluted circumstances in which all of them toy with each other using the conniving rules of Foxx's "breakup handbook." It's a plot that could have gone all wrong, but writer-director Daniel Taplitz wins smart, original laughs by eschewing the obvious in the ensuing chaos and creating quick-witted characters for his talented cast. Recommended. [Note: DVD extras include both widescreen and full screen versions, audio commentary (by writer-director Daniel Taplitz, producer Lisa Tornell, and costar Gabrielle Union), the 18-minute “The Break-Up Handbook” making-of featurette, a five-minute mock interview with “Quincy Watson” (Jamie Foxx), two minutes of bloopers, and--strangely--the colorized Three Stooges short “Hoi Polloi” (18 min.). Bottom line: always nice to have both versions of the film on one disc, and this one has a solid set of extras to boot.] (R. Blackwelder)