In the new film “Something New,” Kenya is a successful accountant up for partner at her Los Angeles firm. She’s got her life together, with a recently purchased first home, but after yet another Valentine’s Day with the girls she agrees to go on a blind date set up by a coworker.

Her blind date turns out to be a handsome, near-perfect guy named Brian. The problem: he’s white. Our African-American heroine dismisses Brian explaining that she isn’t “prejudiced, I just prefer dating black men.” She’s looking for what her friends refer to as her IBM, her Ideal Black Man, a long list of characteristics that make up her perfect man.

At her coworker’s engagement party she admires the beautiful landscaping and is introduced to the gardener, who of course, turns out to be Brian. Brian might not be a guy she wants to date, but his skill as a gardener speaks for itself and thus the plot unfolds.

Kenya learns to loosen up and Brian makes her garden bloom (after all, there has to be some slightly cheesy analogy, right?).

The dilemma? Kenya never meant to fall for Brian and things become strained when Brian and Kenya struggle with the challenges of interracial dating. Kenya is introduced to her IBM, played by suave and sexy Blair Underwood, and must decide if her list and her heart can agree.

“Something New” manages to do what many recent films have drastically failed to do: it is truly something new at the box office. While the story seems to be a new twist on an old idea, writer Kriss Turner and director Sanaa Hamri give a fresh rendition of what romantic comedies are all about.

Sanaa Lathan (of “Love & Basketball” and “Brown Sugar” fame) doesn’t disappoint as Kenya McQueen and Australian actor Simon Baker fits the bill as the hunky gardener with a heart of gold. Donald Faison, well known for his role on NBC’s “Scrubs” as well as in the film “Clueless,” costars as Kenya’s loudmouth brother and adds more than a few laugh-out-loud moments to the film.

Whether you’re single or have a significant other this Valentine’s Day, “Something New” is a fun, smart and heartfelt romantic comedy that will leave you smiling.

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