Deliver Us from Eva (2003)

44% of critics liked it
(82 reviews)
77% of users liked it
(19,539 ratings)

Three men discover that meddling in their sister-in-law's love life only makes their own lives more complicated in this romantic comedy. Eva Dandridge (Gabrielle Union) developed a sense of responsibility early on in life, when after the death of her parents she was left to care for her three… More Three men discover that meddling in their sister-in-law's love life only makes their own lives more complicated in this romantic comedy. Eva Dandridge (Gabrielle Union) developed a sense of responsibility early on in life, when after the death of her parents she was left to care for her three younger sisters, Kareenah (Essence Atkins), Bethany (Robinne Lee), and Jacqui (Meagan Good). All four of the Dandridge sisters have grown up to be attractive, intelligent, and successful; Kareenah is happily married to Tim (Mel Jackson), while Bethany is engaged to Michael (Duane Martin), and Jacqui is going steady with Darrell (Dartanyan Edmonds). However, Eva still watches over her siblings like a hawk, and while her sisters love Eva dearly, Tim, Michael, and Darrell wish their sister-in-law would stay out of their business. The guys decide that if Eva had a boyfriend, she might be less interested in running other people's lives, and they turn to Ray (LL Cool J), a notorious ladies' man, for help. Ray is short on cash, so the guys make him a deal -- they'll give him 5,000 dollars to romance Eva, sweep her off her feet, and then dump her a few weeks later. Ray agrees, and while getting past her no-nonsense demeanor takes some doing, before long she's head over heels for him. However, Ray unexpectedly finds himself falling in love with Eva, and Eva, when offered a job in another town, decides to stay on to be with Ray. Even worse, the other Dandridge sisters are so impressed with the romantic Ray that they start demanding a bit more TLC from their own men. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 46 min.
Directed By: Gary Hardwick
Written By: Gary Hardwick, James Iver Mattson, B.E. Brauner
Genres: Drama, Romance, Comedy

In Theaters: Feb 7, 2003 Wide
On DVD: Jun 17, 2003
Studio: USA Films

Critic Reviews

Joe Leydon, Variety
[Smith] and Union bring out the best in each other, especially (and surprisingly) during the more dramatic emotional interludes.
Geoff Pevere, Toronto Star
Depicts gender warfare as a kind of pillow fight.
Rick Groen, Globe and Mail
Any romantic comedy that gives you time to think probably isn't doing its job.
Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader
Stuff like that happens only in sitcoms and bad movies ...
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper
Solid cast and the occasional chuckle notwithstanding, this movie is wildly uneven, chugging this way and that before careening off track.
James Berardinelli, ReelViews
Deliver us from screenplays that force likable protagonists to twist and bend their personalities to serve the contortions of a ridiculous and formulaic plot.
Nell Minow, Common Sense Media
Above average movie for high schoolers.
Michael Dequina, TheMovieReport.com
Smith and Union overcome the sometimes-strained mechanics of the plot.
Jason Anderson, eye WEEKLY
While the premise of the director's follow-up ... is promising, he botches the execution at every turn, leaving his cast to drift aimlessly among half-baked plot points.
David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews
The simplistic approach to the material will no doubt please undiscriminating viewers, while those who've seen any romantic comedy will be consistently several steps ahead of the characters.
Marc Savlov, Austin Chronicle
The fact that there's little new in the roundabout urban updating of Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew detracts not a whit from its charms, most of which come from leads LL Cool J and Gabrielle Union.
Derek Tse, Jam! Movies
For the most part, Deliver Us From Eva is a pretty enjoyable, if predictable, romantic comedy.
Susannah Gora, Premiere Magazine
[LL Cool J] delivers an immensely pleasing, touching performance.
Matt Brunson, Creative Loafing
Only LL Cool J's considerable charisma keeps this from completely sinking.
Cynthia Fuchs, Nitrate Online
Luckily, Gabrielle Union's jazz is matched by LL Cool J's torso. And, he can act too, always helpful.
Diana Saenger, ReelTalk Movie Reviews
A wheelbarrow full of laughs with smart characters played well by a brilliant cast.
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
You end up with a movie that's never more than harmlessly entertaining and adequate -- I doubt the filmmaker was aiming so low.