Movie Review Something New

Something New (2006) 

Directed by Sanaa Hamri 

Written by Kriss Turner 

Starring Sanaa Lathan, Blair Underwood, Simon Baker, Donald Faison

Release Date February 3rd, 2006

Published February 2nd, 2006 

Sanaa Lathan's career hasn't blown up into the full blown stardom that I predicted it would after her luminous performance in 2000's Love & Basketball. She was well reviewed in the TV movie Disappearing Acts opposite Wesley Snipes and deserved more attention for her silky, sexy performance as a music journalist in 2003's Brown Sugar.

Her career hit a sad bottom with her attempt at action stardom in Alien Vs Predator. Back in her comfort zone, in the romance genre, Lathan essays yet another smooth, confident and sexy performance in Something New an interracial romance that is as much about race as it is about romance, a combination that similarly themed films can rarely pull off.

In Something New Sanaa Lathan stars as Kenya, a corporate lawyer with little time for a personal life. She is on the fast track to becoming the first black female partner at her law firm. Just because work dominates her life doesn't mean she doesn't think about the things she wants in a man but her standards are far too high for the average man she might meet in a club while hanging out with her friends.

Kenya's romantic life is upended in the most unexpected way when she decides to hire a landscaper. The landscaper is Brian Kelly, a ruggedly handsome outdoors type who goes nowhere without his yellow Labrador retriever. Brian is the least likely love interest Kenya has ever met, and did I mention he's white. Nevertheless, from the moment he began work on her backyard he had his eye on her and she in turn had her eyes on his chiseled biceps.

Naturally, race plays a role in this romance as Kenya's friends and family treat the romance as a fling or passing interest. Kenya's brother Nelson (Donald Faison) is rather horrified by the idea of his sister and a white guy, and even goes as far as to set up a more suitable date for Kenya. Blair Underwood plays Mark and it's a credit to his skills that he takes an underwritten, eye candy role and gives it some depth.

Directed by music video director Sanaa Hamri, in her feature debut, Something New strikes a strong balance between its racial politics and its romance. Sanaa Lathan and Simon Baker have a fiery, sexy chemistry that puts the racial aspect of the relationship in the background. When two actors are so sexy together; their complexion quickly becomes secondary to the voyeuristic pleasure of watching them together.

The film takes the racial aspects of the story head on, confronting the African American perspective on interracial dating which is far more complex than the simpleminded hatred attributed to white people. The feeling of betrayal and a history of negative stereotypes weighs on an interracial couple and while this never becomes the over-arching subject of Something New, the film does a good job of demonstrating the issues.

Part of the fun of Something New is the strong female perspective of the film. Written by Kriss Turner and directed by Sanaa Hamri, with a strong performance by Sanaa Lathan, Something New oozes strong femininity that goes beyond mere girl power. Something New is thoughtful and humorous in its examination of its female characters, not just Lathan but also the wonderful Taraji P. Henson as Lathan's best friend Nedra.

There are no simple stereotypes of women, or men or, more specifically, black women in Something New. The last is a very specific mention because the stereotypes of black women in movies, with examples like Phat Girlz and just about any inner city drama, are becoming cartoonish and offensive. Something New blows away those stereotypes by crafting female characters who are unique individuals and not merely an assemblage of typical characteristics.

There is another fun aspect of Something New and that is how the men of the film are treated like eye candy in ways usually reserved for women. Often when it comes to sexuality in movies the titallation is meant for male audiences. Something New offers a rare slice of beefcake as director Sanaa Hamri uses her camera to leer longingly at both Simon Baker and his rival Blair Underwood.

There is something almost feminist about the ogling of male eye candy In Something New, a sexy statement of equality, if you will.

Sanaa Lathan has seemingly given up on being a star on the big screen. Taking a regular gig on the TV geek show Nip/Tuck, Lathan seems content to make her mark on the small screen. Here's hoping that she will occasionally come back to the big screen for strong romantic parts like the one in Something New. Yes, these are niche roles with no promise of big time success or stardom but she is just so good in these roles. It would be a shame if she gave them up.

Something New is a romantic comedy with brains and a heart and a strong libido. The film deals with race and feminism with light hearted romantic comedy touch. It's not an Oscar worthy drama but as genre pictures go, I wish more films had the care and thoughtfulness of Something New.

Movie Review: Uptown Girls

Uptown Girls (2003) 

Directed by Boaz Yakin

Written by Allison Jacobs 

Starring Brittany Murphy, Dakota Fanning, Marley Shelton, Donald Faison, Heather Locklear

Release Date August 15th, 2003

Published August 15th, 2003  

Much like Heath Ledger, Brittany Murphy is a star who was seemingly thrust upon us by the Hollywood-marketing machine. Ever since her debut as the sweetly naive makeover victim in Clueless, Murphy seemed destined for years of best friend supporting roles, and maybe a television career. Somewhere along the line that changed and Hollywood decided she would be a star. The first test of that stardom is the slight girl-power comedy Uptown Girls co-starring true star in the making Dakota Fanning.

In Uptown Girls, directed by Remember The Titans Boaz Yakin, Murphy is Molly Gunn. Molly is the trust fund party girl daughter of a dead rock star. With millions in the bank and an accountant paying the bills, Molly's life is filled with clubbing and sleeping. Molly did attend college but has never held a job. That all changes when Molly's accountant runs off with her millions, leaving her nothing.

Molly is forced to move in with friends, first her stuck up prissy best friend Ingrid (Marley Shelton) and then her non-threatening male best friend Huey (Donald Faison). Molly must also get a job for the first time in her life, which Huey helps her out getting. He sets her up in a job working as a nanny for a precocious 8- year old named Ray (Dakota Fanning). Ray is the daughter of a record company executive (Heather Locklear in a cameo), who doesn't want a nanny. Ray is the strangest 8-year old on the planet, neurotic on par with Woody Allen, a neat freak, and fan of classical music.

What do you bet that Molly's wild child will have conflict with Ray's orderly clean lifestyle? Not the most original premise and not the most original script either. This puts the onus on Murphy and Fanning to carry the film through it's dull familiarity. Neither actress sadly is up to that task. Both actresses work very hard but the strain shows in scenes of treacle sentimentality.

These problems should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with the work of director Boaz Yakin who is one of the rare directors who aspires to mediocrity. His goal is the mid range. He goes for smiles where better directors go for laughs and melodrama where better directors go for actual drama. His Remember The Titans was a blockbuster that got better reviews than it deserved thanks to the charisma and talent of Denzel Washington. That film was stuffed with every sports movie cliche imaginable and topped of with more melodrama than daytime TV. The same could be said of Uptown Girls, though thankfully without the sports.