Look, this is not the best of movies, but the effort is really great. Yes, the acting is that of some student in Junior High trying to convince teach the dog really ate her homework: inflection, expression is okay, but at the same time, unconvincing AF. This shows that African-American movies can be mediocre too, just like (the bulk of) the white ones. No longer are black filmakers required to be twice as good as white ones in order to get their movies made. When you think about it, this is one of the most emancipating things that can happen, I'm only half kidding.
Yes, the storyline is somewhat predictable, except at the end. But it performs the basics, there are no great plot holes, especially considering the budget.
The lead actress is the biggest problem, acting two roles, Innocent Maxine and Evil Maxine. And because she's got the biggest role, it seems as if the acting is really bad, but truly, the other actors aren't half bad.
The production value is passable, it uses the daytime soap tactic of never doing outdoor shots, which gets annoying. But the aerials of Atlanta are great, although they might've been taken from stock footage.
Also, what's nice, is that the story doesn't stuff itself in the straight jacket of happy endings. It's not the Lilywhite-Goody-Two-Shoes-Ins-Out-In-The-End frame. What I liked too, was the micro role of the white cop. It was so tiny, it kind of rubbed it in even more.
So:
Acting by the lead actress: 4
Rest of the cast: 7.5
Montage: 9
Storyline: 7
Location scouting: 8
Production value: 6.5
The Melancholic Alcoholic.
