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I was about 21 when I read WTE and 24 when I saw the movie. The book was so, so, so good and was one of the first I'd ever read about 'grown black women', so contextualize my love affair with the book. I identified with Savannah and her sophistication.
I walked out of the theater, MAH. My girlfriend who had not read the book was looking at me like I was crazy because of my ranting. She thought it was the best thing she ever saw, since it was the first movie that 'she' saw featuring successful black women. So in essence, we were both craving the same thing, something to identify with.
As the years passed, WTE had to grow on me. I never jumped up and down for any of the movie portrayals, except the way Angela flung that cigarette. But frankly, I cared the least for Loretta Devine's character for one reason only...Terry McMillan told her that she needed to gain weight to play Gloria, and Loretta hasn't lost that weight yet. Personally, I think that was a cruel choice for Terry to put out there for her; who wouldn't have wanted to star in a movie with that cast? They rewrote the rest of the movie, why couldn't they have had an average-sized Gloria?
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