SYNOPSIS
Dubbed “Refusing to Exhale” by director Gary Hardwick, “The Brothers” traces the hilarious journey of four African-American men as they take on love, sex, friendship and two of life’s most terrifying prospects — honesty and commitment.
Smart, successful and sexy, Jackson Smith (Morris Chestnut), Brian Palmer (Bill Bellamy), Derrick West (D.L. Hughley) and Terry White (Shemar Moore) are “The Brothers” — lifelong friends banded together to weather love’s innate terrors and occasional triumphs in this brazenly comic yet painfully true exploration of the battle between the sexes. Amidst the career track, basketball and bar hopping, “The Brothers” love women, as many as possible, but shocking revelation tests the foursome’s friendship and changes their dating habits forever.
The foursome begin the story with an emergency meeting at their local bar: reformed playboy Terry has decided to tie the knot. The rest of the gang use Terry’s frightening news as a leaping off point to work through their own romantic troubles. Jackson, the gang’s resident pediatrician, is desperate for intimacy but terrified of commitment. Meeting attractive, available Denise (Gabrielle Union) only complicates matters further, particularly when a secret about her past is revealed. Derrick still finds time for the boys despite his demanding wife, who doesn’t always meet his demands, while Brian, the old school bachelor, fights tooth-and-nail to protect his independence from women who don’t deserve him anyway. As his friends weather the storms of their own romances, Terry begins to doubt his decision to settle down.
Will Terry go through with the big “M?” Will Derrick and his wife reach an understanding about his “needs?” Can Brian get over his attitude problem with women, or will he just continue to “get over?” And finally, does Jackson have the courage to be the man Denise deserves?
Follow the hilarious path of four men as they clumsily navigate the worlds of sex, friendship and family, and finally learn the hard way that although they seem to know and have it all, “The Brothers” have a lot to learn about women and, ultimately, themselves.
Written and directed by Gary Hardwick and produced by Darin Scott and Paddy Cullen, Screen Gems presents “The Brothers.” The executive producer is Doug McHenry, the editor is Earl Watson.
