A revision of Eric
Rohmers 1972 comedy Chloe in the Afternoon, I Think I Love My
Wife transports Chloe to New York City.
Richard (Chris Rock, who also directed) is the only
African-American partner at the firm Pupkin and Langford. He is
happily married to Brenda (Gina Torres), a beautiful, sweet-natured
schoolteacher. They have a lovely home and two adorable
children.
Theyre the younger, hipper Cliff and Claire Huxtable.
But they have stopped having sex. They are in couples therapy with
a woman who is neither married nor a parent, and in voice-overs, we
learn Richard is gazing longfully at attractive women in the street
and going out of his mind.
Enter Nikki Tru (gorgeous Kerry Washington in a role originated by
French actress Zouzou). Nikki is the incredibly hot ex-girlfriend
of one of Richards friends. She likes Richard, and because her
current relationship is on the rocks, she seeks his comforting,
safe male presence. Richards masculine co-workers gaze with lust
when Nikki sashays through the office. The females, knowing Richard
is married, seethe.
The film is alternately funny, tedious and predictable, a TV sitcom
with R-rated dialogue. As Richards somewhat older adviser and
friend, Steve Buscemi is an always welcome presence. Torres and
Washington are also fine, if limited by the material.
But Rock, who co-wrote the script with Louis C.K. (Pootie Tang),
misses as often as he hits. A tirade about panties is dolorously
unfunny, while a misadventure involving Richard and Viagra is
amusing, indeed. Some things just dont work at all and make you
wonder why anyone would think they would.
These include a game Nikki plays involving dropping dollar bills
from heights and watching people below scramble for them and a
scene in which the film breaks into a musical.
That Nikki seems a bit nuts and obnoxious makes any sympathy we
might have for Richard fly out the window with those dollar bills.
Behavior we might accept in a besotted Frenchman makes a highly
educated, African-American professional look like a weak-willed
fool. Perhaps such a man might risk everything for a little pootie
tang on the side, but why should we care?
(I Think I Love My Wife contains sexual situations and
profanity.)