Spring Break
'Sweet Home Alabama': Film great for movie dates
Sean Bogle
Issue date: 10/3/02 Section: VARIETY
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There are some movies that you just can’t dislike. “Sweet Home Alabama” is one of them. Director Andy Tennant (“Fools Rush In,” “Anna and the King”) created a heartwarming romantic comedy that will have those below and above the Mason Dixon Line smiling. With rising star Reese Witherspoon (“Cruel Intentions,” “Legally Blonde”) in the driver’s seat, Sweet Home Alabama has of replaced “Barbershop” as the #1 comedy in America.
The plot is subtle, yet complex. Melanie Carmichael is a successful New York fashion designer who has just accepted an offer of engagement from New York City’s most eligible bachelor, Andrew Hennings (Patrick Dempsey). Hennings is the son of New York’s mayor and is head over heels for Carmichael. After giving the marriage proposal of a lifetime, the only mountains the couple have to face are the ones they’ll be climbing on their planned honeymoon in Ireland.
Melanie Smooter, however, is a young woman from the boonies of Alabama with a past far removed from the flashy fashion designer she has posed as for seven years in New York. Smooter is unhappily married to her childhood sweetheart, Jake Perry. Perry is as country as it gets, but his enduring love for Melanie has caused him to ignore the divorce pleas that Melanie has been screaming from a distance. Now before Melanie Smooter can return to being Melanie Carmichael, and become Melanie Hennings, she must clean up her past and return to Alabama.
When she does, the true comedy of the film begins. The characters are nothing less than Southern and there is no possible way the environment could have been created in a Hollywood studio. With Melanie’s sole mission being to settle her divorce with Jake, she overlooks how much she missed the South. With Jake hanging on by a string to the only woman he ever loved, Melanie is forced to wait around her old town. After reuniting with family and friends she soon regains an appreciation for her roots and her first love.
Back in New York, Andrew is busy making wedding plans and feuding with his cynical mother over the marriage of which she would never approve. With Andrew only knowing Melanie Carmichael, he has no idea about the past his bride to be has left behind.
As we all know, anything done in the dark will come eventually come into the light and Melanie’s past is no exception. When the new fiancé decides to fly his Lear jet down to Alabama and surprise Melanie, all H-E-L-L breaks loose. Cultures collide and viewers are in for a wild ride.
With all this said, the final scenario is obvious. Melanie has started a romantic Civil War and she must side with either Andrew of the North or Jake of the South.
Reese Witherspoon’s Southern accent can be shaky at times and there is no great acting anywhere in the movie, but a good storyline and solid writing pulls “Sweet Home Alabama” over the top.
If you’re looking for a great date movie and you just can’t wait for “Brown Sugar” next week, “Sweet Home Alabama” is undoubtedly a good choice.
Contact Sean Bogle at District_Chronicles@hotmail.com.