Not Easily Broken

Year: 2009

Genres: Drama

Directed by: Bill Duke

Written by: Brian Bird

Starring: Morris Chestnut, Taraji P. Henson, Maeve Quinlan, Kevin Hart, Wood Harris, Jenifer Lewis

Company: TriStar Pictures (Sony) | Runtime: 0 minutes | Not Easily Broken on IMDB

Chronicling the story of one couple's love, loss and ultimate faith in one another, Not Easily Broken follows the lives of Dave and Clarice Johnson in their second decade of marriage. Dave's dreams of major league baseball success were dashed by an injury in college, leading him to a steady but unfulfilling career as the head of a small construction firm. Clarice is basking in the glow of real estate stardom, creating a life that revolves around her rise to the top. She has become blind to Dave's needs, the most important being his desire to become a father and start a family with her. Soon Dave and Clarice must face a married couple's most serious questions: are we really meant to be together, and if we are, how do we fight to keep what we have built as man and wife? (Sony Pictures)

Not Easily Broken trailer

Stina Chyn

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Coupled with decent acting but average cinematography and editing, Not Easily Broken hums more fittingly to the tune of a LifeTime television event.

Andrea Gronvall

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Based on the novel by T.D. Jakes, this is a queasy mix of comedy, melodrama, and self-help spirituality; it's meant to be uplifting, but its profamily message is undercut by its virulently misogynistic treatment of the realtor and her mother (Jenifer Lewis), both too shrewish and controlling to be believed.

doozied real

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The movie was fantastico. I enjoyed every scene of the movie. excellent perfecto. It's motivated me to by the book. I goota get it. It captured al audiences, It wasn't just black.

Theresa Everline

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It's fascinating how an innocuous film can suddenly flare up into offensive claptrap.

Kyle Smith

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As bland as the Kenny G-style smooth jazz its hero listens to in moments of distress.

Perry Seibert

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Those looking for genuine drama should probably look elsewhere.

Kirk Honeycutt

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The actors do what they can with the cards they're dealt but can't overcome the nakedness of the dialogue or the characters' actions. Duke does ensure that the production flows smoothly though. And those frequent injections of comedy do wonders.

A.O. Scott

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Mr. Dukes filmmaking is functional at best, and the extreme shifts in emotional tone -- especially a late and disastrous swerve into tragedy -- are handled clumsily in Brian Birds script. Yet Not Easily Broken is not easily dismissed. For one thing, the cast is excellent, and for another, its intentions are serious and generous.

Nathan Rabin

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For a film shamelessly trumpeting the importance of staying together through the hard times, Broken makes a disconcertingly convincing case for divorce.

JadeInTheATL

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One might expect preachy, but instead just life affirming. With the exception of the Mother-In-Law the characters are realistically written. The script creaks a bit as some scenes don't flow from the narrative but drop in like they were cut and pasted. It could have benefited from a few more re-writes. Bill Duke's direction is a bit choppy at times, but mostly well paced and thankfully unobstrusive. In a way an anti-soap opera, in that characters are not above temptation but are capable of resisting it. A Spanglish-lite.

Justin Berton

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Unfortunately, for those who do not subscribe to the notion that God's dust smooths a marriage's rough patches, but rather hard work by people do, the message rings hollow.

Glenn Whipp

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The movie may be preaching to the choir -- and every inch of it feels like a sermon -- but it's a pretty decent homily, heartfelt and strongly delivered by a committed cast.

Chris Nashawaty

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Laughter through tears is director Bill Duke's M.O., and he hits the bull's-eye of that modest target.

Scott Foundas

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These resourceful actors -- to say nothing of the audience -- deserve better.

Ann Hornaday

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Exerts an unmistakable appeal, thanks to an absorbing story and fine performances from Morris Chestnut and Taraji P. Henson.

Sean Axmaker

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Director Bill Duke may believe the message but he never invests himself in the characters or their story, which becomes an illustrated lesson with reflective interludes and comic relief.

Michael Phillips

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The film is likable. Its messages, many of them Lord-oriented, are all equally heartfelt.

Michael Sragow

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The whole thrust of the movie is to warn black women against emasculating their men.

Wesley Morris

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For most of Not Easily Broken, I wondered why the movie wasn't worse. Then I remembered it was directed by the veteran Bill Duke, who applies ample TLC.

Claudia Puig

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Well-acted and involving.