User Reviews

They're both approaching 30 and have found success in their different but equally demanding careers. He's a hip-hop producer/exec, and she's a magazine editor for XXL. Their relationship is defined by their mutual love of hip-hop, and for each other. His name is Dre (Taye Diggs) and her name Sidney (Sanaa Lathan).

It was three years ago that I fell in love with H.E.R. (a girl named Katie) and offered her "Brown Sugar" as a Valentine's Day gift and for her birthday (which was two weeks later). For most who fell in love with H.E.R., hip-hop started back in the '70s with DJ Kool Herc driving around the Bronx flatlands blaring the sound of a new era on his speakers. For me, I fell in love with H.E.R., hip-hop, the first time I heard "Walk This Way" by Run-D.M.C. and Aerosmith, which was recorded in 1986.

Director Rick Famuyiwa has a passion for the music, and it seems to have culminated with "Brown Sugar," a film that some have called an urban version of "When Harry Met Sally" with a hip-hop beat. Sidney begins nearly every interview with the same question: How did you fall in love with hip-hop? For her, it was July 18, 1984, when she discovered a music genre with break dancing, DJing, emceeing, and graffiti tagging - the four elements of hip-hop.

It's the passion for the rhythm and the beat that brought Sidney and Dre together as children. Early in their time in college, they both considered giving it a go at romance, but Sidney decided it wouldn't be right. Her close friend Francine (Queen Latifah) warns she's turning into a Terry McMillian character. Now, as adults with careers and goals, their romance lives have taken radically different courses. Dre has become engaged to Reese (Nicole Ari Parker), who is beautiful and not some monster as movies like this would require. There is a sense of sincerity in a scene where she and Sidney confront one another about Dre.

Dre, meanwhile, who works for Millennium Records, has been assigned by his boss (Wendell Pierce), who wants MTV rotation, to produce a pair of jokesters named Ren and Ten and who call themselves the "Hip-Hop Dalmations" - "they represent that whole unity (that's 'u.n.i.t.y.') thing." Dre quits Millennium after this fiasco and decides to start his own label by first signing Chris Shawn (Mos Def), who he believes is a real artist. Dre and Sidney both realize they have to keep their feelings for one another on the down-low, especially since she is now involved with professional ballplayer Kelby Dawson (Boris Kodjoe).

"Brown Sugar" works as a pretty sweet romantic comedy that also doubles as a metaphor for the loss of dignity in hip-hop. Sid and Dre's being in love is paralleled against hip-hop's acceptance into the mainstream, and its loss of any meaningful qualities. They both feel the beat, and the passion since that day in July 1984 when they fell in love with the same thing, and its growth over the years. But despite the over-commercialization of my favorite music genre, one thing is certain:

I still love H.E.R.

7/10

Brown Sugar (2002) could have been retitled Love & Hip-hop if only to simplify matters. Like Love & Basketball, it marries the tried-and-true romantic flick formula to the emergence of mainstream "black" culture. Because of these similarities and the presence of Sanaa Lathan, most viewers will quickly lump Brown Sugar into one of two pools. They will either see it as yet another "black" film about a lifestyle that was once counter-cultural and is now, thanks to MTV, cliched or as one more in a long line of romantic comedies.

This film fits into both categories but is far better than most of its fellow films. The hip-hop culture is a childhood background that has turned into a profitable lifestyle for Dre and Sid, the two main characters. Their careers are products of the American craze for pop culture but their love for hip-hop is strong enough to allow them the hope that they can somehow make a difference in the business. Films with black stars tend either to drown them with imagery of the ghetto (a la Menace II Society, Baby Boy, etc) or completely ignore the African-American element, dress the characters in business suits, and absorb them into the "white" corporate world of success. Brown Sugar does neither. Hip-hop is natural to Dre and Sid and is present in their conversations without being obtrusive. Writer Michael Elliot is wise to let them lead their lives in the corporate world without ever losing their childhood backgrounds.

In the other camp, romantic comedies generally sacrifice character development and plausibility to accomodate the dreaded near-misses, love misunderstandings, and the climatic scene where the man publicly confesses his undying love. For the most part, Brown Sugar steers clear of these pitfalls and remains true to its characters. The movie never pretends that any of its characters are perfect or indeed that any of them are ever sure of any of their emotions. This is not a fairy tale movie where characters have sex because they are in love. This film is more realistic. The characters are young and romantic at heart and for one reason or another, they find sex first. That then leads them to at least the misguided pretense of love. As one character explains it, "put a man and a woman together for long enough and something's bound to happen." Infidelity is shown as a sign of emotional uncertainty not of villainy. Even the best of the characters eventually considers it. But neither Famuyiwa's camera or Elliot's script vilify them for it. The characters earn the viewer's sympathy despite their mistakes and when confronted by their angry spouses, they do try their best to be honest and direct.

The script also avoids the kinds of contrived jealousy traps that most romantic comedies rely on. When one character finally falls for another and acts on his feelings, he is not lead astray by a misunderstanding. He arrives early enough to realize that she has managed to find love elsewhere while he was making up his mind, but too late to do anything about it. Even the public pronouncement of love is cleverly flipped. All in all, this movie should be watched by anyone who has seen one too many weak romantic or African-American comedies and needs to be reminded that a string of bad movies does not ruin a genre.

Andre 'Dre' Ellis (Taye Diggs) is tired of selling out as A&R in a hip hop label. His lifelong friend Sidney Shaw (Sanaa Lathan) is more concerned about her career as editor-in-chief of a hip hop magazine. Their platonic relationship is thrown for a loop when he tells her that he's marrying Reese Ellis (Nicole Ari Parker). He tells her that men are looking for Brown Sugar, somebody sweet enough to marry and freaky enough for the bed. She's jealous of Reese and Reese notices. Dre and Reese get married but Reese is not that happy when he quits his job to start his own label. Kelby Dawson (Boris Kodjoe) surprises everybody by proposing to Sid. Sid and Dre discover Reese cheating on him.

This is a good functional romance. Sanaa and Taye Diggs are nice actors for the roles. I like Nicole Ari Parker in her role. The hip hop industry insider stuff has to be taken with a grain of salt even though there are a couple of musician actors. It follows a certain formula and that's perfectly fine. I really like the actors and that keeps my interest.

I just loved this movie!!!! It brought back the "old-fashioned" love story. Everyone was so good in it but I thought the actor who stood out was Mos Def especially with his "Humphrey Bogart/Casablanca" analogy. It was just too funny and yet it made a lot of sense. Also his conversation with Boris Kodjoe in the kitchen was also very funny. This (to me) seems to be the first piece of film work that took hip-hop seriously and beautifully incorporated it into a love story. I was also impressed with the fact that there was no nudity and hardly no profanity.

I knew I'd enjoy this film was hooked when I saw the cameos of several old-school rappers/MCs (if you are a child/teen of the 80s, watch this film to see!)

Okay, the story was predictable, but honestly, how many ways can romantic comedies be done? Romantic comedies follow the same formula (well, the ones the movie studios currently release). Moving on...

The cast was good. Taye Diggs - good job. Has he done any projects where his work was horrible?

Boris Kodjoe, Nicole Ari Parker - nice to see them in something other than _Soul_Food_ from Showtime.

Queen Latifah, Mos Def - two (of the few) hip-hop artists that have crossed into the mainstream portion of the entertainment industry who didn't "change" to the point where they are unrecognizable to those who remember their work from the late 80s/early 90s.

Sanaa Lathan - great job. Ms. Lathan has a screen presence that seems stronger in every film she does. I'd really love to see Ms. Lathan in work other than the romantic comedies like _Disappearing_Acts_, _The_Best_Man, _The_Wood_, etc. Not that there's anything wrong with these films, but I'd like to see her as the leading lady in other kinds of work.

I like the way this film portrayed New York City - the beauty of the city is seen when you see the characters walking, hanging out, etc.

An entertaining film. I recommend it for hip-hop lovers and those who like seeing black love on screen. Expect to be entertained (which is why romantic comedy films are made in the first place, right?)

Childhood best friends gradually realize that they may have stronger feelings for each other.

As a lifelong fan of romantic comedies, I'm always thrilled to discover a classic. Especially one that has this many strengths. The potential partners we hope the co-leads do not end up with are not pure evil(like Meredith in the Lindsay Lohan Parent Trap - yes, that one is a family film; however, it wasn't necessary for them to push it that far), they're not even just... kind of boring or slightly annoying, like some of the ones from the Meg Ryan starring entries, which are less refined if thoroughly effective.

On that subject, one criticism I've encountered in other user reviews is the similarities between this and When Harry Met Sally. Honestly, it's really only in the core concept that they can be compared. Other than that, they're very different. That is about a period of years and how the two titular protagonists grow and change over a long duration. This one is about a much shorter chunk of time, allowing for a focus on what happens only in that. As well as the way that the love of hip-hop is closely tied to their identities, and works as a metaphor for what they're like, including together. I recommend reading the comments section of the Roger Ebert review where this is explored in detail with examples. 7/10.

This movie bears a striking resemblance to Jerry Maguire. Dre is a music agent in the hip-hop music industry that is battling with what his actual job is vs what he views his job should be. Enter the best friend who happens to be a woman and things start going haywire as nobody in this movie can seem to decide what they really want. She wants him, he wants her, nobody wants anybody.....Give me a break! Oh, if you do decide to watch it all the way through, there is one line near the end that is SO cheesy that you can't help but lose it. At least you will get one good laugh.

My summary of the movie is my opinion. I love this movie because I feel that Sidney Shaw is using a metaphor throughout the whole movie. She is comparing Hip Hop to her best friend Dre, both of which are alike. I find this movie amazing because of all the metaphors found within the movie, that only one can find if they look closely.

For example, when Sidney and Dre are in the store looking at something to buy for her new place, they come across a "vase" and the woman at the store explains to them that many couples enjoy that piece. Later within the movie, you see that that vase is in Sidney's house.

I also enjoy this movie because everything that is said, and everything that is done within the movie has a meaning behind it. Foreshadowing is found everywhere, you just have to look closely enough for it. Nothing in this movie is done without a reason.

Every line said within the movie is said beautifully and has significance behind it. My favourite line within the movie, that I've carried with me ever since I heard it is, "So what is the difference between rap and hip-hop? It's simple. It's like the difference between saying you love somebody and being IN love with somebody. Rap is just a word." When I heard that line, I fell in love with this movie and I had to watch it over again, and I have watched it many times. Each time I find more meanings that I missed the first time. What I like even more about this movie is that they use actual artists in the movie that state their opinion on "When they first fell in love with Hip Hop." "Brown Sugar" spoke to me. It's real. Nothing in it is fake like in the majority of movie's these days which is why I think I enjoy it so much. I recommend this movie to anyone who has a passion about something or to anyone who looks for significant meanings behind anything.

Usually when you watch a romance about two people who are "just friends", one of the pair isn't very attractive - otherwise, why wouldn't they immediately get together? This isn't the case in Brown Sugar, starring the equally gorgeous Sanaa Lathan and Taye Diggs. So why would they stay just friends? Because they grew up together, established a strong friendship as children and bonded in adolescence through mutual love of hip-hop music. As adults, Taye works for a music producing label and Sanaa writes critiques. They get along very well, but they've both put each other in the "friend zone" and have no intention of changing it. Despite Queen Latifah, Sanaa's best friend, repeatedly teasing about their obvious attraction, Taye gets engaged to Nicole Ari Walker.

If you're just looking at this as a cute romantic comedy, it won't hurt you. But if you want to take it seriously, there's a major red flag. Taye Diggs's character is not a nice person. He has no problem using up his friend's attention and time, happy that he's the only man in her life; when she starts dating someone, he's jealous and unsupportive. Yet, he expects her to be completely supportive about his engagement. The night before his wedding, he takes advantage of Sanaa's friendship and kisses her, then goes his merry way with Nicole. Then (yes, there's more!), he has a moment of self-importance and quits his job. The first person he tells is Sanaa, and they hang out in the park for a few hours talking about what a great idea it would be for him to start his own business. When he finally comes home and tells his wife, Nicole is upset that she wasn't included in his decision, told before Sanaa, or turned to for the sharing of his feelings. She's completely right! Taye's response: "The wife's job is to support the husband." If that's his idea of marriage, any woman should steer clear of him. Nicole is beautiful, poised, intelligent, classy, and forward-thinking. And yet, instead of apologizing and admitting he made many mistakes in one day, he throws it up to her that Sanaa supports his whim of creating a business. Any friend would support his pipe dream; a wife has a completely different perspective because it affects her!

Alright, I'm off my soap box. If you like the lead actors, you'll probably enjoy the movie. I found it entertaining and funny, even though I didn't like the message. My favorite part was when Mos Def was giving Taye romantic advice. He admits he hasn't been given any real development because he's the buddy character: "I'm not the Humphrey Bogart. I'm the Peter Lorre; I'm the sidekick."

I expected to enjoy a romantic comedy featuring Hip Hop, but was disappointed on many levels. First of all, the story is so badly recycled as to make it almost unbearable. Second, the setting, acting and story are not very authentic or believable. Third, there are a lot more good black actors to choose from than these standard picks. How about some originality? Third, there were very few Hip Hop songs played in entirity - if any. None seemd really central. Overall, film was a great disappointment, but the editing style was very interesting and almost made the film worthwhile.

Husband's comments follow: This was a good flick. Parts of the hip-hop story may be a little hard to follow if you're not a long time rap fan. Other than that, this is a top quality flick. Funny, romantic comedy. Some really hilarious parts. All around great. Somewhat similar to "When Harry Met Sally".

Wife's comments follow: "Harry Met Sally"? No way, not enough story of the two main characters. What story there was of these two was pretty entertaining. I was not as into all the background on hip-hop, although I did see the reason for exploring it, just not to that extent. I felt it was a documentary at some points in the movie.

Why are movies like this made? They open big one week, then they are gone with no audience support after the initial opening. This is another example of horrible movie-making. No talent actors reading a script that came straight out of the ghetto. Don't waste your time!!!

Dre and Sidney have grown up friends and matured through their shared love of hip hop music. Now in their late twenties, he is an executive of Millennium Records while she is the editor of XXL. Dre's marriage sparks deep feelings within Sidney, which she battles to control. However changes in both their lives in terms of love and the direction of their relationship with hip hop, brings about choices they both must make.

Before this film had finished production I had spotted on imdb that artists such as Common, Talib Kweli and Mos Def were in this movie and I was looking forward to see it. I saw it today as my wife is a fan of Diggs and must say that I was left feeling slightly underwhelmed. As a romantic comedy it is surprisingly light on both romance and comedy. The tangled web of `do they love each other, don't they love each other' loses steam long before it reaches the end of the film and the prominence of cheating in the story is a turn off. It still sort of works but not as well or as compelling as in other films – the fact that both of the lovers get involved in marriage caused me to be less supportive of them becoming a couple (which is important for a rom-com to get right).

In terms of laughs the film is pretty thin and it only got a few laughs out of me. It is all reasonably amiable but this doesn't make it funny. The best laughs came from minor support characters rather than the main story, which is far too busy talking about hip hop or looking sad over unfulfilled love.

In terms of hip hop, I was expectant after the film opened with talking heads from many famous artists, including several whom I'll buy anything they release. However after this opening the music is only really referred to in a dull voice over by Lathan. The film does make good swipes at modern hip hop (particularly funny and barbed is The Hip Hop Dalmatians) but it is nowhere near at transferring the effect of the music as, say, 8 Mile or Slam were. The soundtrack is really lacking in strong joints and hip hop is only given the stage briefly when Mos Def performs at a show. Strange then that this film claims to be about hip hop as much as it is about romance.

The cast are pretty good even though the material is not quite as good. Diggs is not given good dialogue and his constant hip hop talk doesn't always sound natural when he says it. Lathan is a lot more comfortable and is better, although again, she is held back by a depressingly over-sentimental voice over. The two together do have chemistry and it is a shame that the plot wasn't set up better to use this. Mos Def is the star of this film and it is a shame that he is only given a little screen time. He has the funniest scenes and when he is talking to Kelby about being a rap coach and, later, romancing Francine, he shows real astute comic touches in his performance. Likewise Latifah is good and about a million times better than she was in the woeful Brining Down The house – here the support role suits her.

Overall I felt that his film didn't really succeed at anything it tried but was still watchable and quite enjoyable nonetheless. The romance was too confused by marriages etc to really work well and to get the audience behind it and the comedy never really arrived apart from a perfect performance by Mos Def. The whole hip hop thing meanwhile, could be viewed as under-served or simply a marketing gimmick depending on how cynical you are.

This well made film was recommended to me when it hit DVD by someone who knew I was going through a bad time. It was the perfect romance for my ailing heart. The film was so well made, the characters so rich and the story perfect for the times that even now, writing this, I feel a pang in my heart for that time in my life. Few films have touched me. This one did.

Don't get me wrong, "Brown Sugar" is a cute movie. And I got all of the references to hip-hop and being in love, yadda, yadda, yadda. All the same, I was waiting for the surprise, the twist, something else. Nothing new was added to the genre. Mos Def, as the bright spot, managed to deliver a refreshing character in spite of the "been down this road before" script. Wait until you can catch it on cable.

A delightful film from the beginning to the end. I liked this film for so many reasons. The primary reasons are the following:

1) A creative and deep look at the impact of hip hip as a music and culture on individuals 2) Beautiful chemistry between the characters Sidney and Dre. 3) Mos Def - period 4) Sanaa Lathan - for her essense as an actress in this film, as well as her amazing beauty. 5) Hip Hop Cameos

The start of the film was especially interesting with the old school (and some new) artists explaining their love of hip hop. I've grown so tired of seeing these new rap films with phony actors like Master P, Snoop, and the Roc-A-Fella crew. It was rewarding to see hip hop artists in a film IN THEIR ELEMENT. With that, I'd like to point out that Mos Def has established himself as one of the few rappers who has sucessfully crossed into the film industry without totally insulting the quality of movies (2pac, Will Smith, Ice-T to some degree, and Eve are a few of the better acting ones).

Aside from the hip-hop aspects, the romantic part of the movie worked very well for me. I really enjoyed the up and down relationship of Sidney and Dre. It helps that I love Sanaa Lathan no doubt, but overall it really was an enjoyable romantic comedy in that aspect. Taye Diggs was cast well as Dre, and I thought he showed a good perspective on the being-real v. getting-money battle that so many in the industry go through.

The Cameos were great with everyone from Russell Simmons to good ol' Angie M. up in the New York Studios. Personally surprising to me was seeing one of the assisant basketball coaches at my univeristy appear as a bartender. Questlove, Kool G. Rap, De La Soul all had good comments.

I can't refrain from commenting on Mos Def's character hitting up on Queen Latifah. hahaha, what a great series of scenes. Also cool was the reappearing blue vase (notice that?).

If you haven't seen the film, go out and rent it. Enjoy! 9/10

..........when I heard Spoonie G's Love Rap & Spoonin' Rap. Hip hop was ingrained into me and many native new yorkers just like the movie portrayed it. The movie speaks to my heart, in that hip hop has been romanticized on the big screen....finally!

Sanaa was great, DIggs was great, Mos Def and La were both off the hook. The essence of hip hop was put up on the screen in this movie, so if you didn't know before, you've seen it now.

I went to high school with Slick Rick, Dana Dane and the whole Kangol Crew (Al Sneed, Lance Brown and Omega the Heartbreaker to sum them up) and know them personally. The opening sequence in the park with the three aforementioned rappers doing their thing brought tears to my eyes......that was the purity of hip hop, before millions could be made....these cats were street celebrities that you could reach out and touch at anytime.

The simple fact that the movie is saturated in hip hop culture is enough of a remark for anyone who is in LOVE with hip hop.

ANyone who slammed this movie as dumb or stupid is quite simply cuturally stagnant...you just don't understand.

As far as comments go about the movie's shortcomings.....please, spare me the high-minded movie speak. If you didn't live it, you can't say what is and isn't believable. I KNOW these characters in many different people that I deal with....the director and writers GOT it.

It's like that, y'all!!

This movie is ultimately one of the best love stories i have seen on film.You don't even have to like hip hop to enjoy this movie. It will make you laugh, and it will even make you cry(tears of joy). Lathan and Diggs light up the screen together. It's a beautiful love story which sends a message of how to friends can really fall in love. It will certainly make you think twice about that friend of the opposite sex, that you have known for years, that you find attractive, that doesn't have a mate. It's just a wonderful movie to see, its not too raunchy on language or sex scenes. It's kind of funny how something like hip hop music can join two people together.

I put this movie in the same category as The Wood. Here it's all about an era, were the music meant everything from the DJ to the MC. In the movie you have a brother who loves the music, and a woman who can't understand the brother's love for it and how it seems to drive him. On the flip side you have another woman that understands the brother, and supports the brother (take note ladies SUPPORT we need it). What makes this a good movie, or love story is it could really happen. Imagine finding a supportive soulmate who is down for you, and you could relate to on many levels. However, often times that is never who you end up with for one reason or another. If your feeling this holla back.

I was watching Love & Basketball for the umpteenth time and starting researching information about it. As I linked to the actors' pages, I found that Sanaa Lathan dated Omar Epps in real life after appearing in The Wood. Well The Wood featured Taye Diggs as well. Then, Taye and Sanaa appeared in The Best Man as a couple. Boris Kodjoe who plays her fiancé in Brown Sugar was also her date in Love & Basketball. Regina Hall was Sanaa sister in L&B, also played a stripper in The Best Man.

I think that over time our familiarity with these actors leaves us predisposed to favor the movie before we even see it. We already have this warm, gooey feeling left over from the last movie. Since there is only a few years between all of them, we often forget which thing happened in which, so we are forced to watch them all over again.

I don't know if this is good or bad for African Americans in the film industry. Is there enough work out there for everyone? Are some actors over-saturating the sea of "Black Films" if you will? That is a question still up for debate. But, I definitely put this one up in the top five of great contemporary African American love stories.

Just watched this movie on DVD. And while I found the hip-hop commentary interesting, the love story seemed to close too to LOVE AND BASKETBALL for comfort. After the cool opening scene (featuring cameos by Doug E. Fresh, Big Daddy Kane and De La Soul) I thought maybe the hop-hip angle would dominate the love story, and for a while it seemed like it would, but the opposite occured. The "friend-becoming-lovers" angles has been done better in other movies (LOVE AND BASKETBALL, WHEN HARRY MET SALLY.., etc.) and it's getting old. Don't get me wrong, the movie's not a total waste. The two leads are great, the supporting cast is good too. So if you don't mind a typical love story you just might want rent this one. Not great, but not bad as the other reviewers states.