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Reagen Sulewski: In the immortal words of another of our writers, "Who would have thought a white Canadian would be out of touch with the movie preferences of African-Americans?"

Tim Briody: I posited that maybe the target audience was glad this wasn't "Tyler Perry's Think Like a Man." Trying to go back and find something aimed squarely at the African-American market that wasn't from Perry Inc. was actually kind of difficult. He's monopolized the demographic with his play adaptations for years now. (Though if this was "Tyler Perry's Madea's Thinks Like a Man," all bets would be off.)

Max Braden: I agree that I think its strength was that it contrasts with Tyler Perry rather than mimics his material. After years of taking dates to sweetly safe heavy-on-the-dates, light-on-the-comedy, the guys finally got a movie about boys being boys. And unlike Perry's nebulous "it's about relationships" plots, Think Like a Man had a stronger hook in the use of the self-help book as a weapon in the war between the sexes.

Get to know him. He's gonna be around.

Kim Hollis: What portion of the opening weekend success of Think Like a Man do you credit to Kevin Hart? Are you ready to describe him as a star?

David Mumpower: I am convinced that opening weekends of comedies are defined by two elements, the name recognition of various cast members and the amount of humor in the trailers. Think Like a Man is comprised of a lot of fine actors, most of whom I like a great deal (I watched the Night Stalker television reboot solely because of Gabrielle Union, for God's sake). The commercials for the movie completely hinge on whether Kevin Hart makes people laugh...and consumers just voted with their wallets that he does. What I can say definitively is that Kevin Hart's per-film salary spiked after this weekend's scintillating box office results. There have been repeated efforts to inflict the Jimmy Fallons and Dane Cooks of the comedy realm on consumers, but this is the first populist ascension since Dave Chappelle, who didn't want to be that famous and shunned the spotlight. Assuming Hart wants the work, he'll have his pick of comedies for the next several years. Is he a star whose name people know? Not quite yet. He took a strong step in that direction with Think Like a Man, though. And thank God for that. I am sick and tired of people from The Office and various SNL rejects getting rammed down my throat.

Edwin Davies: I think that he played a pretty big role but I would hesitate to describe him as a star just yet. There are other factors at play here - the large cast and the popular source material - that would have made the film successful to an extent anyway, and I don't think Hart would have been able to open a film based solely on his name prior to this film. However, this is the perfect platform for him to launch to stardom from, and I think that his next project could push him over the top. To borrow an example from William Goldman, Think Like A Man is to Kevin Hart what 10 was to Dudley Moore: the film that paved the way for him to become a star in his own right.

Matthew Huntley: David, your line about people from The Office and various SNL rejects getting rammed down your throat made me laugh, because I feel the same way. Just sayin'...

And since Kevin Hart IS poised to get a lot more feature film offers after Think Like A Man's performance, let's hope he chooses some worthy projects and not just run-of-the-mill fluff. Hart seems like a smart, observant comedian and his future films should possess similar qualities.

I agree with David, though, that while Hart's inclusion probably played a role, it was a combination of many factors that led to TLAM's success, mostly, as David pointed out, the fact that the trailer/ads made people laugh. Even so, Hart's presence isn't something we should undermine. His performance documentary, Kevin Hart: Laugh at My Pain, was very successful and put him on the radar. Now that he's been in an all-star comedy, he just needs a solo project to officially solidify him as a bankable celebrity.

Felix Quinonez: I totally agree that Kevin Hart was a factor in making this movie a success. But I think he was only one of the factors. I think the whole ensemble cast thing is a draw unto itself. I really believe that people enjoy going to movies that have a lot of names they recognize. Even if none of the actors are draws themselves, you put them together and they will attract audiences. Plus I don't think we should ignore the marketing on this one, I think they did a great job going after the people they were targeting. But I do think this will definitely help Kevin Hart get more roles and perhaps because of this, he will get the role that actually does make him a star.

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