R E V I E W S
Sugar & Spice (2001)
Starring: Marley
Shelton, James Marsden, Mena Suvari, Marla Sokoloff, Alexandra
Holden, Rachel Blanchard Studio: New Line Cinema Review Posted: 2.4.01 Rating: 3/10
By Stephen.
"This is what cheerleaders do when they're bored"
Sugar & Spice is exactly the movie one should avoid. I know that critics are somehow liking it, I found myself despising it. What is wrong it it? Well, a lot of things. First off, the story. It's there, but it's so out of place, so thrown out of control, and doesn't deliver. Sure, the movie presents an interesting take on cheerleaders and bad girls, but the way it was told as a movie clearly didn't make me happy.
The five leading cheerleaders, whose slogan is "cheerleaders kick", attend Lincoln High School. The squad consists of Diane Weston (Marley Shelton), Kansas Hill (Mena Suvari), Hannah Wold (Rachel Blanchard), Lucy Whitman (Sara Marsh) and Cleo Miller (Melissa George). Why did I not spare you with their last names? I don't know. Moving on, Diane Weston becomes impregnanted by football star Jack Bartlett (James Marsden). They want to get married, but don't have their parents's consent. They decide to hitch themselves.
Living in an apartment with not a lot of money to go, they try to do their best. Diane and her four cheerleader friends have got to find a way to make money and to support the coming-soon baby. And, what's easier to rob a bank? Getting a loan from the bank? No. Not if you're a struggling young couple, it's not. So, they need guns. When they don't have enough money to purchase them, the man who sells the guns wants the squad to pick up his daughter Fern Rogers (Alexandra Holden) and make her part of the gang (cheerleading gang, of course).
Sugar & Spice doesn't know how to use time and story. It's so out of order. Jack is working at a video store. Diane is at home eating Snickers and ice cream. All the while we have to listen to Lisa Janusch (Marla Sokoloff) narrate the story, because otherwise we wouldn't get it, right?! Lisa is the girl that didn't make the cheerleading squad. As she's narrating, we get scenes of her talking to police officers about the bank robbery that took place. So the movie is told in flashbacks with Lisa telling the story. But, how do we and the cops know she's telling the truth? We don't, really.
Did I like the acting? I don't think so. Directing? What was there to direct? The characters? Not likely. The actors? Yes, all of the major characters (the squad), except Jack and Lisa. The only reason I rated it 3/10 is because of the nice actresses. If it hadn't been for them, the rating would be a disaster, as you could easily imagine. When the robbery does take place, it's not really the event I've been anticipating, because the all previous scenes bothered me. Sugar & Spice might be something greater than what I think it is for most people out there. I just didn't like it. That's all. So don't hate me if you like it.
And the end is also very scant. Lisa suddenly confesses to the police that she hasn't told them exactly what happened. Lisa was a witness to the robbery and knew it was the squad, but for some reason, she changed her story. Subsequently, the squad didn't get jailed. Nevertheless, what really happened to the characters? How does what they did affect their lives right after? Sure, they've made us read the recap at the end, which was somewhat funny, but it didn't fully satisfy. Cleo Miller top-lined the cast of 'Scream 8' and the rest I don't remember.
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