Women In 'Waiting' Audiences Shriek. They Laugh. But Mostly They Relate

Date: December 26, 1995
By Stephanie A. Crockett, Special to The Washington Post

From The Washington Post
Submitted by: Larry A.


They came in groups -- mothers and daughters, sisters and friends. Some stood in line for hours to buy tickets; others charged them in advance by phone. They were all dying to see "Waiting to Exhale," and they had to see it together.

The film adaptation of Terry McMillan's best-selling book blew into area theaters on Friday and soared to No. 1 at the box office over the weekend. Not surprisingly, the sold-out crowds were made up mostly of black women.

Shawneen Elmore, a box office cashier at AMC Academy 14 Theaters in Greenbelt's Beltway Plaza mall, has never seen so many women buying tickets to one movie. "They had been coming in since last Wednesday, and they were buying 10, 15 tickets at a time," she said Sunday. "We never had to sell tickets early, but women kept asking about them, so we just put them on sale when we got the schedule. I've never seen anything like it."

The movie, which depicts the difficulties of four black women and the men in their lives, has been labeled as male-bashing by some. And, it seems, many women prefer to see it with other women.

Kimberly Presley, 23, made a point of seeing "Waiting to Exhale" with her sister, Karen, and her best friend, Maureen Aninye -- and not with her boyfriend. She said she likes the way the film "shows black women coming together, being comforters, supporting one another."

"I personally believe there is no stronger tie than the relationship between two females and their friendships," added Aninye, 24.

"If I went with a man, they would have been busy trying to defend the men," noted Karen Presley, 22. "I wanted to go with someone who was on the same accord as me, laughing at the same parts, clapping at the same parts."

The Beltway Plaza screenings were filled almost entirely with women, many shouting such things as "That's right, girl" and "You know that's right" at the appropriate moments. The applause was deafening when Bernadine (Angela Bassett) burns all of her husband's clothing and his BMW after he informs her that he's leaving her for a white woman. They laughed at the funny scenes, grew silent at the touching ones, and offered audible advice to the screen whenever it seemed necessary. They couldn't help themselves; they had all been there once, or at least known friends who had.

After the movie, they talked. They weren't really bashing men, just chit-chatting about the good -- and the bad -- they have come across.

Ruby Burrell, her sister Sarah DeShazior and their sister-in-law Kearnetta Green went to see the film Saturday. They're all married but remember what it was like when they weren't. "I could still relate -- I've heard those lines before," said Burrell. "And because I am married, this movie made me appreciate being married and not being out there looking for someone."

Beverly Beard and her friends Sarodel Childs, Carolyn Vincent and Jackie Davis went to lunch at L&N Seafood in Pentagon City after the movie. They discussed how it mirrored certain times in their lives, their friendships with one another and their relationships with men.

They talked about women and the mistakes they make in relationships:

"Some women are unhappy with themselves, so they want to be married," said Davis, a divorced 45-year-old technical support specialist. "Women need to learn how to separate themselves from what's below the waist and what's above the waist."

They talked about depending entirely on a man:

"I don't think in this day and age, any woman should depend on a man for anything," said Beard, who is 43 and divorced. "Not just in this day and age, any day and age," said Vincent, who is 39 and has been married for six years.

Of course, some men took a deep breath and went to see the movie. Frank Copeland, 37, went with his brother, Vincent. "It's not a male-bashing movie," he said. "I would see it again, because it's all about being good to yourself. Women can learn from it; it's an awakening."

But a lot of men don't plan on ever seeing "Waiting to Exhale." Malik Gadsden, 23, spent part of the weekend at Beltway Plaza, but he was just shopping. "It's a women's movie," he said. "All they're going to be doing is talking about how messed up men are."

Aninye said she doesn't think the movie will increase tension between men and women. "Not every woman wants to see the movie because they want to bash men," she said. "There are good men out there. And if it didn't do anything else, it got us all together for a day."

"Yeah," said Karen Presley. "It's the Million Man March for women."