I saw this movie once while I was in my addiction and once after 16yrs clean,both times hit me in the gut.
14 Reviews
Accurate
oliviamcclure-9763814 March 2021
Sweet Something
ramonstreet13 April 2003
I noticed, in the credits, that the script is adapted from a journal "found in a cupboard in Queens". I found this movie to be an accurate and, at times, wrenching portrayal of the downward slide of a crack cocaine addict. I can say this absolutely, because I've been there myself. Many of the characterizations and dramatic situations are right on the money, particularly the portrayal of the addict's wife (God, I love Mira Sorvino!), because addicts not only destroy their own lives, but the lives of their loved ones, as well. I empathized with the main character's (Angel's) denial of his problem (ie. "It's YOUR fault I'm in this mess, not mine - you don't understand me! You're trying to bring me down!"). I wish to emphasize that I like this movie, not only because it's accurate, but because it's also a very good movie. I's REAL. Highly recommended!
Something I Noticed...
Theo Robertson9 June 2004
... About SWEET NOTHING is that all the comments on this page have praised it while 174 voters have only given the movie an average rating of 5.0
My own opinion is that this is a very flawed movie . Take the opening sequence when we`re shown the fate of Angel . Think about that for a moment , as soon as the opening credits stop rolling we know what the ulitimate outcome of Angel`s life is going to be so right away there`s no surprises for the audience . This sums up what`s wrong with the movie - It`s badly written and I can give several instances :
The voice over : Very distracting and it`s not even used as exposition
Gaps missing : Angel tries the crack pipe for the first time and the story jumps via a caption " Three Years Later " . What ? Angel has been a crack fiend for three years ! Strange that there`s been absolutely no consequence of his habit within that time . Very unconvincing
Goof : Angel is a former marine but his former marine buddy refers to him as " Soldier " . Former USMC members would would refer to each other as " Marine " not " Soldier "
Sorry guys but I didn`t think much of SWEET NOTHING . It`s badly structured and not very well acted . It does make the accurate point that no one is forced to take drugs but there`s umpteen better drug movies out there
My own opinion is that this is a very flawed movie . Take the opening sequence when we`re shown the fate of Angel . Think about that for a moment , as soon as the opening credits stop rolling we know what the ulitimate outcome of Angel`s life is going to be so right away there`s no surprises for the audience . This sums up what`s wrong with the movie - It`s badly written and I can give several instances :
The voice over : Very distracting and it`s not even used as exposition
Gaps missing : Angel tries the crack pipe for the first time and the story jumps via a caption " Three Years Later " . What ? Angel has been a crack fiend for three years ! Strange that there`s been absolutely no consequence of his habit within that time . Very unconvincing
Goof : Angel is a former marine but his former marine buddy refers to him as " Soldier " . Former USMC members would would refer to each other as " Marine " not " Soldier "
Sorry guys but I didn`t think much of SWEET NOTHING . It`s badly structured and not very well acted . It does make the accurate point that no one is forced to take drugs but there`s umpteen better drug movies out there
Interesting look at a familiar subject.
Hermit C-23 November 1999
As several reviews of this film noted, the story of a middle-class person seduced by drugs has been done quite a lot lately. That in itself is not a fault. This movie manages to bring its own perspective to the subject and will hold a viewer's interest.
The main character, Angel (Michael Imperioli), works for some kind of a financial business, but at a pretty low level. He keeps a journal that is extensively quoted from by way of narration. This is a useful device, and not one used solely to make the job of advancing the narrative easier. Through it one gains insight into how easy it is for a person to rationalize selling and using illegal drugs. He tells himself at first that he deserves the money that selling crack brings in. He needs it to provide a good life for his wife and two children. Other people take shortcuts; it's the way of the world. Why shouldn't he? Later he rationalizes the desire to get high, as more and more of his profits go up in smoke. Then he rationalizes crawling headfirst into the crack pipe.
Angel manages to keep a semblance of normal life for some time, but as the desire to get high takes precedent over everything else and as he uses up the almost inexhaustible supply of love given by his wife (Mira Sorvino), the inevitable bottom is finally hit. This movie is commendable in that its main purpose isn't just to see how graphically the squalor of junkie culture can be depicted, though there is plenty of that by the time the film ends. Most frightening is what happens to a friend of Angel's named Raymond (Paul Calderon). While Angel is only concerned with using and getting money to supply his habit, Raymond stays in the business end, becoming a monster capable of any cruelty to protect his own interests. It's a far cry from the buddies we see at the beginning of the film, jubilant over the birth of Angel's second child.
The story was based on journals found in an empty New York apartment. 'Sweet Nothing' mat not be a groundbreaker, but it is a very worthwhile film that makes a niche for itself in a familiar genre.
The main character, Angel (Michael Imperioli), works for some kind of a financial business, but at a pretty low level. He keeps a journal that is extensively quoted from by way of narration. This is a useful device, and not one used solely to make the job of advancing the narrative easier. Through it one gains insight into how easy it is for a person to rationalize selling and using illegal drugs. He tells himself at first that he deserves the money that selling crack brings in. He needs it to provide a good life for his wife and two children. Other people take shortcuts; it's the way of the world. Why shouldn't he? Later he rationalizes the desire to get high, as more and more of his profits go up in smoke. Then he rationalizes crawling headfirst into the crack pipe.
Angel manages to keep a semblance of normal life for some time, but as the desire to get high takes precedent over everything else and as he uses up the almost inexhaustible supply of love given by his wife (Mira Sorvino), the inevitable bottom is finally hit. This movie is commendable in that its main purpose isn't just to see how graphically the squalor of junkie culture can be depicted, though there is plenty of that by the time the film ends. Most frightening is what happens to a friend of Angel's named Raymond (Paul Calderon). While Angel is only concerned with using and getting money to supply his habit, Raymond stays in the business end, becoming a monster capable of any cruelty to protect his own interests. It's a far cry from the buddies we see at the beginning of the film, jubilant over the birth of Angel's second child.
The story was based on journals found in an empty New York apartment. 'Sweet Nothing' mat not be a groundbreaker, but it is a very worthwhile film that makes a niche for itself in a familiar genre.
Just say no
SusanAdebisi6 August 2006
To crack & this film.
Michael Imperioli Is good In the primary role showing some understanding of the emptiness & selfishness Inherent In serious users - the same cannot be said for the people who put this together. Any credibility his performance earns Is outweighed by the triteness of his descent into "my drugs hell". In no time Angelo goes from respectable guy with an adorable young family to a raving crackhead living out of a tracksuit. His transformation Is well judged In comparison to his friend Ray whose character screams "this Is what we Imagine would happen".
There's plenty of Angelo on the can but nothing to substantiate him urinating his life away, criminally there's even less of Monika. The moral seems to be crack will destroy you In about an hour & a half (It could happen to you!!) as a serious look at drug dependency as Intended this Is weak & clichéd, for Mira Sorvino fans It's merely average.
Michael Imperioli Is good In the primary role showing some understanding of the emptiness & selfishness Inherent In serious users - the same cannot be said for the people who put this together. Any credibility his performance earns Is outweighed by the triteness of his descent into "my drugs hell". In no time Angelo goes from respectable guy with an adorable young family to a raving crackhead living out of a tracksuit. His transformation Is well judged In comparison to his friend Ray whose character screams "this Is what we Imagine would happen".
There's plenty of Angelo on the can but nothing to substantiate him urinating his life away, criminally there's even less of Monika. The moral seems to be crack will destroy you In about an hour & a half (It could happen to you!!) as a serious look at drug dependency as Intended this Is weak & clichéd, for Mira Sorvino fans It's merely average.
It's all in the acting.
jemmytee13 June 2004
Without Mira Sorvino, Paul Calderon and (most especially) Michael Imperioli, this would have been just the latest "Afterschool Special" edition of "Panic In Needle Park" crossed with "The Man With The Golden Arm" and a few of the seven naughty words the FCC so dislikes.
I can see why it took a couple of years (and probably Mira's Oscar) to get this movie released. The writing is uninspired. The directing is just okay. And the feel of the film is cheap, even for a low-budget indie from New York.
But the acting! Mira Sorvino shines as Monika. Paul Calderon makes Raymond's shift from good buddy to monster not only plausible but inevitable. And Michael Imperioli as Angel...he's got the chops, baby. I realize most everybody knows him as Christopher from "The Sopranos" (and he's good in that), but here he blinds us with Angel's hunger -- from needing to provide for his family right through to needing the rocky stuff.
Intended message -- "Stay away from drugs, children, or they'll ruin not only your life but the lives of those who love you."
Actual message -- "With fine actors, even leftover meatloaf can seem like prime rib."
I can see why it took a couple of years (and probably Mira's Oscar) to get this movie released. The writing is uninspired. The directing is just okay. And the feel of the film is cheap, even for a low-budget indie from New York.
But the acting! Mira Sorvino shines as Monika. Paul Calderon makes Raymond's shift from good buddy to monster not only plausible but inevitable. And Michael Imperioli as Angel...he's got the chops, baby. I realize most everybody knows him as Christopher from "The Sopranos" (and he's good in that), but here he blinds us with Angel's hunger -- from needing to provide for his family right through to needing the rocky stuff.
Intended message -- "Stay away from drugs, children, or they'll ruin not only your life but the lives of those who love you."
Actual message -- "With fine actors, even leftover meatloaf can seem like prime rib."
Good movie about the destruction of drug addiction
Avwillfan8920 March 2015
I literally looked everywhere for this movie: online, in stores, and in bargain boxes - and yet I couldn't find one copy. I finally ordered a used VHS tape from America, and was able to watch it.
I seriously don't understand why this film never went to DVD. It's a really good, decent, but terrifying movie about a normal, every day family man consumed by crack addiction. His perfect world and mind is torn apart by his drug abuse and dealing, and his family falls apart from him.
This is an early, rare gem of a movie in Michael Imperioli's career, pre-Sopranos. Mira Sorvino had just won her Oscar and is brilliant as the struggling, long suffering wife. Siskle and Ebert gave two thumbs up for the movie, and it was highly praised by everyone who had seen it at the time that it premiered. So it baffles me why it was never released.
I'm so glad I finally got to see it, however. It's a fine add to the collection of anti-drug movies, along with Trainspotting, Requiem for a dream and A Scanner Darkly.
I seriously don't understand why this film never went to DVD. It's a really good, decent, but terrifying movie about a normal, every day family man consumed by crack addiction. His perfect world and mind is torn apart by his drug abuse and dealing, and his family falls apart from him.
This is an early, rare gem of a movie in Michael Imperioli's career, pre-Sopranos. Mira Sorvino had just won her Oscar and is brilliant as the struggling, long suffering wife. Siskle and Ebert gave two thumbs up for the movie, and it was highly praised by everyone who had seen it at the time that it premiered. So it baffles me why it was never released.
I'm so glad I finally got to see it, however. It's a fine add to the collection of anti-drug movies, along with Trainspotting, Requiem for a dream and A Scanner Darkly.
A good story elevated by fine acting
SMM-311 October 1999
I caught this one on cable during a night of insomnia. I dialed it in so I could sleep, but it kept me completely awake. The story is small, simple, and familiar. What kept me watching were the wonderful, understated performances by just about everyone, which is usually a tribute to the director as well as the cast. This is not a big film, but it is quite memorable.
A well-acted and powerful look at a family man's struggle with the lucrative world of drugs
Jace-312 February 1999
Before she won an Oscar, Mira Sorvino starred in this small but powerful movie about a guy whose seemingly perfect world comes crashing down when he enters the drug trade. Michael Imperioli, who played Spider in "Goodfellas," has a leading role here and does an outstanding job of portraying down-and-out drug dealer and user Angel, but never allows us to dislike him. Throughout his struggle we are right by Angel's side.
Even the ending is not obvious: there is no happy finale, but somehow we know he is on the long road back.
Even the ending is not obvious: there is no happy finale, but somehow we know he is on the long road back.
Definitely something...
dennisyoon16 May 2005
Warning: Spoilers
Not flashy, but definitely captures something personal. It grabs you like a drug and keeps you stuck on the downward spiral. I think maybe people who have experienced cocaine/crack addiction can definitely identify with Angel and hope desperately like him for redemption. That was what resonated with me. The insights into the life of crack addiction and drug dealing will hit home for those in the know. It seems appropriate that it was developed from someone's journal. It made me see the inner workings of Angel as his lesson learned is shared. Kids, please stay away from Cocaine/Crack and Heroin. Look at how sick those addicted to it are and you'll see there is nothing cool about it.
one of my few all time favourite films i could watch constantly forever
amphetaminelogic2 March 2006
i saw this in a TV book looking for something to watch on the telly and found this but wasn't sure if id fall asleep or not so taped it from the beginning and am glad i did. i did not fall asleep, i couldn't it is captivating, enthralling, amazing! i never liked the sopranos but Michael imperioli is fantastic as angel falling further and further into the situation and his crack addiction. everyone in the film plays there part to the point of perfection. amazing. if you've seen it email me at amphetaminelogic@aol.com if you haven't try and get hold of a copy asap!!! be warned i think it is hard to get hold of, don't know anyone else who has seen it and have never seen a copy of it... sadly... cos i only have a part copy on VHS now.. hint hint :)
Accurate correction
mcrinna2 September 2017
Greetings and salutations. Responding to an entry made by author. The journals were actually found in my apartment after and eviction, (these were my journals). As i have the story, from Gary Winick (RIP) some pages were faxed to him and that was how the journal was first brought to his attention. Mr. Winick (after our meeting) aided and assisted in my recovery process and we would keep in touch via phone or in person (NY meetings) until his passing.
Who are these people? What is the social context?
margot18 January 2008
One of the scariest movies I've ever seen, right up there with "Requiem for a Dream." Paul Calderon, a good actor, plays a small but key (and nasty) character that cannot have helped his career but makes the terror of the film work splendidly.
This is a film about crack addiction, and how it can suck in even a hard-working young man with a good wife and some ambition. We are given just enough backstory about the lead character to make his fall seem credible and terrifying.
Another reviewer referred to the Imperioli character as 'Angelo' and he could well be an Angelo. However the character's name is actually Angel, which makes me wonder. Was this really supposed to be about Puerto Ricans, but adapted to make them maybe Sicilian-Americans instead? It reminds me of those Frank Sinatra comedies (e.g., 'Hole in the Head') where the lead was originally Jewish, but made sort-of-Italian to fit the actor. This misfit casting makes the social context implausible--an Italian family that lives mostly among Puerto Ricans and blacks. Nevertheless the script still manages to ring true in certain details, particularly during the last third when Angel attempts to make a little money by getting back into low-level dealing and finds himself in ever-more-sordid situations.
This is a film about crack addiction, and how it can suck in even a hard-working young man with a good wife and some ambition. We are given just enough backstory about the lead character to make his fall seem credible and terrifying.
Another reviewer referred to the Imperioli character as 'Angelo' and he could well be an Angelo. However the character's name is actually Angel, which makes me wonder. Was this really supposed to be about Puerto Ricans, but adapted to make them maybe Sicilian-Americans instead? It reminds me of those Frank Sinatra comedies (e.g., 'Hole in the Head') where the lead was originally Jewish, but made sort-of-Italian to fit the actor. This misfit casting makes the social context implausible--an Italian family that lives mostly among Puerto Ricans and blacks. Nevertheless the script still manages to ring true in certain details, particularly during the last third when Angel attempts to make a little money by getting back into low-level dealing and finds himself in ever-more-sordid situations.
Obvious writing is made better by solid (if unspectacular) delivery
bob the moo10 October 2004
Celebrating the birth of his first child, Angel's drinking pal Raymond takes him to a crack den where they both take hits Angel's first. The first hit is easy and Angel soon finds himself making it a regular habit, but still holding it together enough to keep his job and family happy. Years pass without incident but Angel and Monika are unhappy, they have two kids now and money is always very tight. So when Angel gets the offer to get involved in dealing he takes it and happily watches the money starting to roll in, but with time Angel finds himself sucked into the darker side of the drugs world including violence, drug abuse and murder. As his using gets more frequent, money becomes tighter and Angel gets trapped in a vicious circle.
When a film contains a character who starts dabbling with crack on the basis that he can control it, it seldom surprises an audience to find things spinning out of control and said character falling into a pit of despair with slippery sides. And so it is with this film, it keeps to the plot route that we have been taught to expect from such a film and doesn't do a great deal to vary from it. It will come as no shock to learn that Angel gets out of his depth with the drugs, gets in debt to gangsters, risks his marriage etc etc. The plot never risks keeping us awake by doing anything new and the script pretty much serves up the dialogue you'd expect from the characters. It is interesting enough but it is very formulaic and will bring nothing new to viewers who have seen this story told better in other films.
What just about saves it from being dismissable is some solid delivery from a cast of up and comers. Imperioili has played a man captured by drugs in Sopranos where he was given much better material to work with but he still does well here. He is given average material but still turns in a believable performance it would be better if it wasn't all so predictable but he does well with what he has. Sorvino is less convincing and never struck me as a believable character; it may have been weaknesses in the writing but her performance doesn't really help. Support from Calderon and a few others in gangster/junkie roles don't do anything special but aren't bad per se and just fill out the space.
Overall this is a fairly formulaic 'drugs are bad' movie that goes just where you expect it to. The writing lacks any real invention and the direction doesn't have the style and flair that others who have tackled this subject usually try to have, but the cast work hard with what they are given and kept me watching even though I could have predicted every scene from 15 minutes onwards.
When a film contains a character who starts dabbling with crack on the basis that he can control it, it seldom surprises an audience to find things spinning out of control and said character falling into a pit of despair with slippery sides. And so it is with this film, it keeps to the plot route that we have been taught to expect from such a film and doesn't do a great deal to vary from it. It will come as no shock to learn that Angel gets out of his depth with the drugs, gets in debt to gangsters, risks his marriage etc etc. The plot never risks keeping us awake by doing anything new and the script pretty much serves up the dialogue you'd expect from the characters. It is interesting enough but it is very formulaic and will bring nothing new to viewers who have seen this story told better in other films.
What just about saves it from being dismissable is some solid delivery from a cast of up and comers. Imperioili has played a man captured by drugs in Sopranos where he was given much better material to work with but he still does well here. He is given average material but still turns in a believable performance it would be better if it wasn't all so predictable but he does well with what he has. Sorvino is less convincing and never struck me as a believable character; it may have been weaknesses in the writing but her performance doesn't really help. Support from Calderon and a few others in gangster/junkie roles don't do anything special but aren't bad per se and just fill out the space.
Overall this is a fairly formulaic 'drugs are bad' movie that goes just where you expect it to. The writing lacks any real invention and the direction doesn't have the style and flair that others who have tackled this subject usually try to have, but the cast work hard with what they are given and kept me watching even though I could have predicted every scene from 15 minutes onwards.
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