How Stella Got Her Groove Back

How Stella Got Her Groove Back is a 1998 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Kevin Rodney Sullivan, adapted from Terry McMillan's best-selling 1996 novel of the same title. The film stars Angela Bassett, Taye Diggs (in his film debut), Whoopi Goldberg, and Regina King. The original music score was composed by Michel Colombier.
Plot.
Stella Payne is a very successful 40-year-old stockbroker raising her son, Quincy, and living in Marin County, California, who is persuaded by her best friend from college, Delilah Abraham, to take a well-deserved, first-class vacation to Montego Bay, Jamaica. As she soaks in the beauty of the island, she encounters a handsome young islander, Winston Shakespeare, who is twenty years her junior. His pursuit of her turns into a blossoming romance that forces Stella to take personal inventory of her life and try to find a balance between her desire for love and companionship, and her responsibilities as a mother and corporate executive.
Reception.
The reception from critics was mixed.
On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 50% based on 50 reviews. On Metacritic the film has a score of 56 out of 100 based on reviews from 23 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews. Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade A−.
Box office.
In its opening weekend, "Stella" grossed $11,318,919, ranking #2 in the domestic box office behind "Saving Private Ryan"s fourth weekend. The film would go on to gross $36,672,941 domestically and an additional $1,605,781 overseas for a worldwide total of $39,278,722, from an estimated $20 million budget.
Soundtrack.
A soundtrack containing mostly R&B and reggae was released on August 11, 1998, by MCA Records. It peaked at number eight on the "Billboard" 200 and number three on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and was certified gold on September 22, 1998.