As the British prepare for Prince William and Kate Middleton’s royal union, American theatergoers are gearing up for Sabrina Watson and Jason Taylor’s big wedding day. The silver screen nuptials take place in storied Martha’s Vineyard.
This fictitious showcase of finery and formality is titled Jumping the Broom, a new romantic comedy produced by Bishop T.D. Jakes and starring Paula Patton who plays Sabrina and Laz Alonso as Jason.
The ceremony unites two people who come from different socioeconomic classes, which only adds to the hilarity. A well-to-do Sabrina, literally, runs into Jason, a regular guy raised by a blue-collar single mom. Both are lovestruck and plan to marry.
Jakes hopes that families will laugh and enjoy themselves when they see the show. “It’s not overly medicinal. It’s pretty palatable for most families to enjoy.”
When asked if the element of the movie that highlights the couple’s decision to remain abstinent would fall on deaf ears in today’s open society, he explains, “The character that Paula plays was promiscuous in the past. She [no longer wanted to be] marketed purely as a piece of meat for sexual gratification and wanted to engage Laz’s character on a different level. He had to get to know her spiritually rather than physically. You don’t even have to be a person of faith to grow weary of superficial relationships.”
Jakes points out that the underlying theme that runs through the movie is the power of forgiveness. “I think it is very, very important that those of us who recite the Lord’s Prayer remember that the words, ‘As we forgive those who trespass against us,’ are supposed to bring us comfort, but they don’t if you are an unforgiving person,” he advises.
For Sabrina, the desire for the covenant of marriage outweighed her and Jason’s class differences and economic backgrounds. Jakes, who is about to celebrate 30 years of marriage with wife Serita, offers, “If you agree where you are going, that agreement on where you are going is more important than where you came from. [Serita and I] made a firm commitment to end up on a front porch, with our teeth in a jar, sitting in a rocking chair. We are in it for the long haul. What I have been able to teach my children is that we aren’t perfect and are no different from any one else. What makes us stick together is that we share a set of ideals. We’ve tried to teach our children [that same principle] unconditional love.”
Jumping the Broom opens in theaters on May 6, 2011, during Mother’s Day weekend. –yvette caslin
