Release Date: 4/24/09 (Limited)
Sugar, written and directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck (Half Nelson), is a sports drama following a pitcher from the Dominican Republic. This film has been on my radar since if premiered last year at TIFF. The film is very well made as the writer-director team shows that in their sophomore effort they are not a one hit wonder. They show talent as storytellers and bring a genre that is usually cliché and create an original, entertaining, and simply phenomenal independent film.
Sugar follows the story of Miguel Santos played by Algenis Perez Soto, a Dominican pitcher struggling to make it as a pitcher and dreams of the big leagues to pull himself and his family out of poverty. Playing professionally at the Kansas City Knights baseball academy, Miguel finally gets his break at age 19 when he advances to the United States’ minor league system. Miguel travels from his tight knit community in the Dominican Republic to a small town in Iowa where he and a couple of other Latin American teammates are the only Spanish-speaking people in the vicinity. As Miguel struggles with the new language and culture, despite the welcoming efforts of his host family, he is faced with an isolation he never before experienced. When his play on the mound falters after an injury, he begins examining more closely the world around him and his place within it, and ultimately questions the endurance of his life’s ambition as a baseball player.
The director-writer team of Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck bring an authenticity to the world of minor league sports. Compared to other sports films especially baseball this is one of the best and most realistic I’ve ever seen. They portray the life of Miguel “Sugar” Santos and develop his character so well. The film at times reminded me of Lost in Translation, where a man is so lost in the language of a different culture, it is very awkward, but sometimes also very funny. The cinematography and editing are very well done. This has all the ingredients a film needs to create an amazing movie
I was a fan of the film Half Nelson and the Boden/Fleck team, in their debut film, got a nomination from Ryan Gosling. I think the performances in this film are very good, but nothing that will really stand out. Not to take anything away from Algenis Perez Soto who carries the film very well and portrays Sugar in a very convincing manner. Where the film does stand out is in the writing. If the Oscars were tomorrow this film would be the front runner for a best original screenplay nod. Developing a story like this must be very hard, as a sports film can become very cliché coming down to the last pitch in a World Series game or something like that. This film is unlike any other I’ve seen in the genre taking a different approach that certainly works in the end. I was completely sucked into the story and connected with it in almost every way possible.
So when this film comes out in the Philadelphia area next week, be sure to go. With the baseball season now in full effect this is a film that everyone can relate to, but even if you’re not a baseball fan this film will keep you entertained and be sure to move you in the end. So I’m not going to have a cliché review and say something like “Suagr knocks one out of the park” or “Suagr hits a home run, 4 stars” I’ll do the film some justice and say “Suagr throws a knuckle curve and dominates the screen” or I could just say…
STAMP IT!!! IT’S MADE
Imdb: 7.0/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 89%
Moviewiseguys: 8.5/10
