Sundance Film Festival

PARK CITY -- Relationship problems kill bedroom performance in this smart romance-romp. A raunchy between-the-sheets peak at modern-day black sexuality, "A Good Day to Be Black & Sexy" should woo urban audiences to the theater, and score on BET and as a DVD rental.

A series of frothy vignettes, "Black & Sexy" centers on relationship dynamics, and, in these ribald cases, relationship dysfunctions. In filmmaker Dennis Dortch's perceptive comedy, miscommunication messes up sex. Usually, there's a third partner in bed in these sexual/romantic encounters: a hidden agenda.

Blending movie and musical styles to enhance the individual segments, Dortch has created an entertaining glimpse into black sexuality and romance. Audiences will identify with his realistic and identifiable characters, in large part thanks to the talented and exuberant cast.

Among the well-assembled cast, Mylika Davis stands out as a take-charge innocent who suffers through her teenage dawg days. Chonte Harris is hilarious as a put-upon "other woman" who skewers her married lover with brilliant, irrational logic. As the perplexed player, Marcuis Harris is sympathetic and lamentable.

All performances are on-target and ripe, highlighted by smart turns from Kathryn Taylor as a selfish lover, Emily Liu as an Asian-American with a forbidden yen for a black basketball star, and Brandon Valley Jones as a flustered, neglected lover.

Tech credits are a soothing and sizzling blend, clarifying the psycho-sexual dramas.

A GOOD DAY TO BE BLACK & SEXY
Magnolia Pictures
1976 Experience
Credits:
Director/screenwriter/music supervisor: Dennis Dortch
Producer: Layla Mashavu Sewell
Director of photography: Brian Harding
Production designer: Vali Tirsoaga
Editors: Tangier Clarke, Dennis Dortch
Casting director: Adetoro Makinde
Cast:
Jeanette: Kathryn Taylor
Tony: Brandon Valley Jones
Candi: Nana Hill
Helena: Chonte Harris
D'Andre: Marcuis Harris
Tamala: Mylika Davis
Jabari: Allen Maldonado
Russell: Kareem Grimes
Julian: Jerome Hawkins
Jesse: Alphonso Jackson
Jasmine: Emily Liu
Running time -- 92 minutes
No MPAA rating