Product Details

• Actors: Vanessa Bell Calloway, Clifton Powell, Lou Myers, Merry Clayton, Casey Lee
• Directors: Michael Toshiyuki Uno
• Writers: Donna Hill, Tony Lee
• Producers: Kimberly Ogletree, Roy Campanella II, Sabrina Gray
• Format: Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Urban Works
• DVD Release Date: September 9, 2003
• Run Time: 95 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0000A0WKV
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #49,598 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "A Private Affair" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

The life of a successful novelist (played by Vanessa Bell Calloway) begins to unravel when the IRS threatens her with the possibility of serving jail time for tax evasion. She seeks refuge with family and friends and tries to get her life back on track, but soon finds that the fame and fortune of her public life now causes her to do things she never suspected she was capable of doing.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars BET Films Finally Gets Something Right!, January 9, 2004

By A Customer

I recently bought this DVD and I really enjoyed it. I always loved Vanessa Bell Calloway. She's a great actress who's been underrated for way too long. I was happy to see her in a starring role. It's been a while.

The film starts off with Nikita Harrell, a famous novelist whose life begins to fall flat once she realizes she could be put in prison for not paying taxes. From that point on, the brilliant yet self-absorbed and mean-spirited Nikita steps on everyone who gets in her way in order to fix her own problems. One night when she's struggling with her latest manuscript she comes to a revelation: she wants to travel to Africa to see the motherland and find herself again. Nikita learns that a trip is not the only answer and turns her attitude around.

This film was lovely and hit close to home because I am an author myself. Nikita was a very selfish woman who learned the hard way that a bad life doesn't give you the right to treat people wrong. She learns to lean on the people who love her instead of running away from them. This is a beautiful family drama. I laughed and cried. My only complaint was that the film wasn't longer. I am not a big fan of BET film adaptations because the ones I've seen were not impressive. A Private Affair is the only BET film I would recommend to anyone. It's light-hearted yet dramatic and just plain fun. Vanessa Bell Calloway has chemstry with everyone she encounters and she convinced me of her part completely. Fans of intelligent black films should definitely get this movie. It's a movie no Vanessa Bell Calloway fan should miss.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars You Can Leave Home, But Home Always Comes Back To You, January 9, 2005

By	Michael Kerner "Michael Kerner" (Brooklyn, New York U.S.A.) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)

It always seems to surprise me about Africa-American entertainment these days. Yet, there are just so many stereotypes written about woment in those roles, and so many of them not given credit in good quality roles, as much as those roles are strictly given to certain actresses like Halle Berry. Yet, with all of those, it does dismantle some light into good movies. Thankfully, BET and Arabesque entertainment, known for their well recieved books have definitely shined in on bringing good quality movies to the DVD market. That has happened with so many great movies from their novels including Playing With Fire, the well recieved After All with Holly Robinson Peete, and other acceptional flicks, including A Private Affair.

In the 2000 film A Private Affair, featuring Vanessa Bell Calloway (Vanessa Bell at the time this film was catually released), the film reflects on a well recieved African-American writer, Nikita and how she learns to come back home after declared a victim to the I.R.S. Yet, she really feels sorry for herself at first, but also learns to rebuild her old life with her family, and an old flame from her past in the process. The movie fairs well, but loses a little of its momentum at the beginning, but gains it back during the middle of the movie, when Nikita decides to take a life-changing journey to Africa so she can recapture her essence and boldness as a author.

For an actress like Vanessa Bell, who was a talk show panelist on the short-lived BET knockoff to The View "Oh Drama!", she has a lot of character in her, that should make her placed as the next Angela Bassett. A Private Affair is a wonderful movie. If you haven't seen it on BET, try renting this video and see if you like it. If you do, go ahead and buy it.

10 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ANOTHER GREAT MOVIE FROM BET, March 29, 2004

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

THIS MOVIE IS JUST ONE OF MANY THAT I HAVE PURCHASED AND ENJOYED BY BET. AS ALWAYS,THE MOVIE IS WELL PRODUCED. THE ACTING AND CAST ARE SUPERB AND IT IS WORTH PURCHASING.