Love is a battlefield*, or at least a skirmish-prone* zone where strategic skills must be deployed*, according to “Think Like a Man.”

Based on Steve Harvey’s humorous book “Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man,” the film not only puts men and women on different pages, but essentially has them consulting conflicting instruction manuals*.

Intended to empower* women, the 2009 book — which is referred to so often it feels like product placement — seeks to enlighten* them about how men’s minds work.

While the outcomes of the individual romances portrayed* are fairly predictable, the chemistry among the cast members makes this more entertaining than most ensemble romantic comedies.

A group of women vow to adhere* to their sisterly scriptures* no matter what temptations* they face, and their multiple stories — with each person representing a different type with a capital T — intertwine*.

There is Lauren (Taraji P. Henson), the high-powered businesswoman intent on landing a partner who is equally successful. She meets a handsome guy driving a Porsche and takes him for the man of her dreams. He turns out to be sensitive but broke Dominic (Michael Ealy), a struggling chef with big dreams and a day job as a valet*.

Kristen (Gabrielle Union) seeks maturity and commitment for her man-child of a longtime boyfriend, Jeremy (Jerry Ferrara). She has put up with his immaturity for years, and after reading Harvey, she embarks* on whipping Jeremy into a grown man.

When the guys, all buddies, figure out that they are being manipulated*, they turn to Harvey’s book to outsmart their women. Of course, the table-turning and double-crossing does not stop there.

The execution is not always clever, particularly as the stories tie up all too neatly. Gender politics, however, is presented with breezy* humor, and the cast is amiable across the board. Director Tim Story draws on the talent he displayed in witty ensemble comedies such as 2002’s “Barbershop.”

Even though “Think Like a Man” espouses something akin to the philosophy in Beyonce’s “Single Ladies,” it makes manipulation more fun than it ought to be.

(SD-Agencies)

Recommended Books

Paperback books

Divergent, by Veronica Roth

The Lost Hero, by Rick Riordan

The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak

Theodore Boone: The Abduction

Between Shades of Gray, by Ruta Sepetys

Matched, by Ally Condie

The Red Pyramid, by Rick Riordan

If I Say, by Rick Riordan

Where She Went, by Gayle Forman

Clockwork Angel, by Cassandra

Chapter books

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, by Ransom Riggs

The Fault in Our Stars, by John Green

Nancy Clancy, Super Sleuth, by Jane O’Connor

Chomp, by Carl Hiaasen

The Son of Neptune, by Rick Riordan

The Lego Ideas Book, by Daniel Lipkowitz

The Invention of Hugo Cabret, by Brian Selznick

Wonder, by R. J. Palacio

The Selection, by Kiera Cass

Dead End in Norvelt, by Jack Gantos