Story of a woman and her three lovers.
The story of Nola Darling's simultaneous sexual relationships with three different men is told by her and by her partners and other friends. All three men wanted her to commit solely to them; Nola resists being "owned" by a single partner.—James Meek <[email protected]>
Nola Darling is an independent-minded young woman who knows what she likes and what she wants out of life. She's attractive, likes sex and has no trouble attracting men but she knows what kind of man she wants. She also attracts women like Opal Gilstrap, who hope she'll 'come around'. The three men in her life - Jamie Overstreet, Mars Blackmon and Greer Childs - all provide their point of view on Nola and on their relationship with her.—garykmcd
A window into the life and loves of a young black woman in Brooklyn. Nola Darling is dating three very different men simultaneously: Jamie Overstreet -- a controlling, protective, patriarchal type; Greer Childs -- a wealthy, vain, arrogant male model; and Mars Blackmon -- a comical, juvenile, immature jokester. Nola has gone beyond even a love "triangle" and the stability of this love "square" is threatened by the increasing jealousy among her three suitors. Finally, under pressure, Nola makes her "choice," but in the end, is this what she really wants?—Tad Dibbern <[email protected]>
The following written prologue appears in opening credits:
"Ships at a distance have every man's wish on board. For some they come in with the tide. For others they sail forever on the horizon, never out of sight, never landing until the watcher turns his eyes away in resignation, his dreams mocked to death by time. That is the life of men. Now, women forget all those things they don't want to remember and remember everything they don't want to forget. The dream is the truth. Then they act and do things accordingly." - Zora Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God. "
In Brooklyn, New York, graphic artist Nola Darling (Tracy Camilla Johns) juggles several lovers, believing this to be normal behavior. She makes love to her boyfriend, Jamie Overstreet (Tommy Redmond Hicks), surrounded by candles. Her former roommate, Clorinda Bradford (Joie Lee), moved out because on weekends she would find Nola's many boyfriends in the bathroom. Nola avoids forming attachments with "dogs," men with crude pick-up lines, who believe that a relationship begins and ends with sex. Jamie's charm is what first attracted her.
Another lover, "Mars" Blackmon (Spike Lee), is a bicycle messenger with an arrow design sculpted into the back of his head. When Nola invites him to her apartment for the first time, he suggests they could be roommates, but Nola is not interested. Jamie knows about her other men, but he is bothered the most by her relationship with a lesbian named Opal Gilstrap (Raye Dowell). However, Nola assures him that Opal is not a lover. When Nola comes down with a cold, Opal fixes her tea and teases that she has potential as a lesbian. She suggests that Nola try same-sex love sometime. Jamie brings Nola groceries and asks Opal to leave even though Nola likes having her around.
Another lover, Greer Childs (John Terrell), claims to be the best thing to ever happen to Nola, and takes credit for molding her into a "sophisticated lady." On a dinner date, Greer insists he is all that Nola needs, and that Jamie and Mars are buffoons. Later, Greer is chosen to be on the cover of the magazine Gentleman's Quarterly, and proposes marriage. Nola dismisses the idea, disrobes, and invites Greer to make love.
Nola's musician father, Sonny Darling (Bill Lee), notes that Nola was an only child who had many interests, but never stuck with anything for too long. Nola regrets being an only child, and plans to have a family with five sons.
For Nola's birthday, Jamie arranges a surprise at a nearby park. He decorates a stone monument, and hires two modern dancers to enact a lovers' picnic to a song composed in her honor. Later, they go to bed surrounded by candles. When Mars telephones late at night to wish her a happy birthday and wants to see her, Nola declines. After she hangs up, Jamie asks why she is attracted to Mars, but she does not respond.
Mars makes Nola laugh but she believes he is in love with her lovemaking, not with her. Mars wonders what she sees in Jamie and Greer. Jamie reaches a breaking point when Nola refuses to commit to him exclusively. Later, Greer accuses her of being a sex addict, and suggests that she see a therapist. When Nola sees sex therapist Dr. Jamison (Epatha Merkinson), he concludes that she has a healthy sex drive and is not an addict.
In time, Nola cooks Thanksgiving dinner and invites all three of her lovers. They proceed to insult each other. Mars accuses Greer of being a Celtics fan, and proposes that he and Jamie do a 60-40 split each week to share time with Nola. When Mars admits he does not like to play Scrabble, Greer comments it is because he does not have the intelligence for it. Nola is annoyed with their fighting, and announces that she is going to bed. As Jamie and Nola cuddle, Greer and Mars leave. Nola wakes from a nightmare in which other black women accuse her of stealing their men and set her bed on fire. Jamie confesses that he has started dating a dancer named Ava, and demands that Nola choose which man she wants to be with.
When Greer invites Nola to join him in the Caribbean for two weeks, she declines the invitation, and admits that she cannot stand to be alone with him for that long. Jamie continues to press Nola for a commitment, and runs out of patience when she tells him it is not the right time. As he leaves, he tells Opal that Nola is all hers, but Nola rejects Opal's efforts to comfort her.
Later, Nola calls Jamie in the middle of the night, claiming that it is an emergency, and asks him to come over. When he arrives, Nola wants to make love, and Jamie is angry that she misled him. He goes to bed with her, but forgoes any romance, and has rough sex with her instead. Before leaving, he pushes her face down on the bed.
Meanwhile, Greer considers Nola's behavior and realizes that she viewed each of her lovers, not as separate people, but as parts of one whole person. When Nola breaks up with Greer, he insults her. Afterward, Nola ends her relationship with Mars, who takes the rejection gracefully, and makes her laugh.
Nola returns to Jamie, and tells him she is willing to commit only to him, but suggests they take a break from having sex. Jamie agrees to give her one last chance. Before long, however, Nola realizes that Jamie wants a "standard-issue" wife, and is too controlling. In the final shot, Nola finally accepts that she will never be a one-man woman. She crawls into bed, surrounded by candles, and falls asleep.
