The Sweetest Thing (Unrated)

Starring: Cameron Diaz, Christina Applegate, Selma Blair
Director: Roger Kumble

Rating: R (for strong sexual content and language)

Review Posted: 8.28.02

By John Teves

Christina Walters (Diaz) and her party hopping pals Courtney (Applegate) and Jane (Blair) are three sexy singles who love the night life. At the city's most exclusive dance club, Christina unexpectedly meets Peter (Thomas Jane), her perfect match. Discovering the next morning that he's left town, she and Courtney set out on a wild road trip to find him. But the road to Mr. Right is paved with seductive surprises and hilarious misadventures.

The Sweetest Thing is an overdone film about a group of females who are all about getting laid playing the field until the perfect mate comes along. Unfortunately, this film languishes from the same plague as most of the guy flicks that it tries to copy. Most of the comic dialogue misfires. We occasionally get some minor humorous bits but overall it misses the mark carelessly resulting in a disastrous mess. The Sweetest Thing couldn't approach my level of appeal; the movie wasn't a terrible romantic comedy, however poor casting combined with overbearing direction undermine any potential strengths, and the payoff was a incoherent and only seldom entertaining flick.

The Sweetest Thing appears in an aspect ratio of 1.85:1 on this single-sided, double-layered DVD; the image has been enhanced for 16X9 televisions. As one might expect from Columbia TriStar the picture looked absolutely stunning, with almost no problems on display.

Sharpness was immaculate. The movie consistently appeared crisp and detailed. Colors were dazzling, as the movie offered a broad and bright palette. The colors came across as vibrant and accurate, with no problems related to bleeding or noise. Black levels were deep and rich, and shadow detail was appropriately heavy. Ultimately, The Sweetest Thing provided a terrific image that appeared consistently superb.

The Sweetest Thing is presented in a Dolby Digital 5.1 mix. The soundfield seemed fairly heavy toward the front channels. Sounds spread cleanly across the front speakers and they moved between channels perfectly. The surrounds generally contributed decent ambient support.

Audio quality was premium. Dialogue appeared crisp and concise at all times; I detected no edginess. Music seemed clear and bright and displayed good dynamic range; the songs and score were active. Effects came over clean and accurate. Nevertheless, I found the soundtrack of The Sweetest Thing to offer a very satisfying experience.

Extras:

Director & Cast Commentary
"Politically Erect" Behind-The-Scenes
"A Day in the Life of Nancy M. Pimental"
Storyboard Comparisons
Never-Before-Seen Footage Subtitled
Theatrical Trailers
Production Notes
Scene Selections
Interactive Menus
DVD-ROM Link to "The Sweetest Thing" Website

The DVD provides very solid picture and sound plus a reasonably roster of extras. In the end, the movie is too fickle to merit a strong recommendation, but fans of Cameron Diaz might want to give it a look.

TOP