If Hollywood was more equitable in its hiring practices, Jada Pinkett would be in the league with Halle Berry, Sandra Bullock, and others of her generation. Pinkett, who gave a bravura performance (along with Queen Latifah) in the earlier "Set It Off," is no less than brilliant as "Lyric," sought after by the hard-working "Jason," played by another neglected thespian, Alan Payne.<br /><br />Both Pinkett and Payne deliver as the lovers torn between the attraction to each other and the responsibilities of family and work that interferes with their relationship.<br /><br />Forest Whitaker is marvelous as Payne's father, a man that must deal with his own personal demons, along with an estranged relationship with his wife, wondrously played by Suzanne Douglas. The rest of the cast (Bokeem Woodbine, Lisa Nicole Carson, Eddie Griffin, among others) are exceptional in a story that is both tragic and uplifting.<br /><br />And the "love scene" between "Jason" and "Lyric" is enough to make the most open-minded of viewers blush.