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Sweet Home Alabama (2002) 5.9
Ratings:
5.9/10 from 57,956 users
Metascore: 45/100
Reviews: 380 user | 98 critic | 35 from Metacritic.com A young woman with a Southern background runs away from her husband in Alabama and reinvents herself as a New York socialite. Director:Andy Tennant |
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Title: Sweet Home Alabama (2002)
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Cast
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Reese Witherspoon | ... | ||
| Josh Lucas | ... | ||
| Patrick Dempsey | ... | ||
| Candice Bergen | ... | ||
| Mary Kay Place | ... | ||
| Fred Ward | ... | ||
| Jean Smart | ... | ||
| Ethan Embry | ... | ||
| Melanie Lynskey | ... | ||
| Courtney Gains | ... | ||
| Mary Lynn Rajskub | ... | ||
| Rhona Mitra | ... | ||
| Nathan Lee Graham | ... | ||
| Sean Bridgers | ... |
Eldon
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| Fleet Cooper | ... |
Clinton
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Plot Summary
|
Plot Synopsis
Storyline
Melanie Carmichael, an up and rising fashion designer in New York, has gotten almost everything she wished for since she was little. She has a great career and the JFK-like fiancée of New York City. But when he proposes to her, she doesn't forget about her family back down South. More importantly, her husband back there, who refuses to divorce her ever since she sent divorce papers seven years ago. To set matters straight, she decides to go to the south quick and make him sign the papers. When things don't turn out the way she planned them, she realizes that what she had before in the south was far more perfect than the life she had in New York City. Written by kay
Taglines:
Fall... in love. See more »Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)
Rated PG-13 for some language/sexual references | See all certifications »Parents Guide:
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Details
Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishRelease Date:
27 September 2002 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
No me olvides See more »Box Office
Budget:
$38,000,000 (estimated)Opening Weekend:
$198,788 (Japan) (13 June 2003)Gross:
$526,003 (Japan) (20 June 2003)Company Credits
Show detailed
company contact information
on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Color:
ColorAspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1
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Tabatha Wadmore-Smith: [in New York] Oh... my God.
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Written by Charlie Daniels, Taz Di Gregorio (as William DiGregorio), Charlie Hayward (as Charles Hayward), and John Gavin
Performed by The Charlie Daniels Band
Courtesy of Epic Records
By Arrangement with Sony Music Licensing
See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
During the movie's filming at Starr's Mill in Fayette County, Georgia, the Starr's Mill High School marching band was asked not to practice outdoors due to the sound carrying all the way to the Mill. See more »Goofs
When lightning strikes sand, or sandy soil, it fuses the sand into a glass-like solid mass known as a "fulgurite." Real fulgurites are usually partially hollow tube-like structures having a granular exterior. The clear glass objects shown in this film are not likely to have been created by lightning. See more »Quotes
Melanie Carmichael: [on her cell phone] I can't. I'm in Alabama.Tabatha Wadmore-Smith: [in New York] Oh... my God.
See more »
Crazy Credits
During the end credits some photos are shown with the cast. In a sequence of them Melanie's parents are "scared" by a punk with a pierced tongue, Mel's co-worker from the beginning of the movie, who comments on her accent when she dreams. See more »Soundtracks
"What This World Needs Is a Few More Rednecks"Written by Charlie Daniels, Taz Di Gregorio (as William DiGregorio), Charlie Hayward (as Charles Hayward), and John Gavin
Performed by The Charlie Daniels Band
Courtesy of Epic Records
By Arrangement with Sony Music Licensing
See more »
"Sweet Home Alabama" is about a young woman, Melanie Carmichael (Reese Witherspoon), who is learning who she is. She must choice between her new life in New York City and the one she left behind in Pigeon Creek, Alabama. The theme of the film is that you can't be two different people; you have to be who you are. You have to face your life and your past and not pretend that you are someone you're not.
The city versus country motif is brought to life throughout the entire film in such actions as a civil war re-enactment, shooting anvils across the plantation yard, and a diverse, yet, predictable group of characters residing in Melanie's hometown. This is far from her world in New York City where she is a fashion designer, engaged to the mayor's son, Andrew Hennings (Patrick Dempsey), and lives life in the fast lane.
The city versus country conflict begins when Melanie returns home to finalize her divorce from her lovable, redneck husband Jake Perry (Josh Lucas). The laughs continue when, much to Mayor Kate Hennings (Candice Bergen) dismay, Melanie and Andrew decide to have their wedding in Alabama. Mayor Hennings is a stiff, conservative ice queen. This makes the first meeting of the happy couples' parents, Mayor Hennings and Pearl and Earl Smooter (Mary Kay Place and Fred Ward), incredibly predictable, yet, still hilarious when you see it play out.
As she was in "Legally Blonde" and "Just Like Heaven", Witherspoon is sweet, smart, and sassy. She pulls you into the film, and you want to see her happy. She has great chemistry with both Jake and Andrew, which makes it difficult for viewers to decide which she should be with. Melanie, herself, can't decide who is for her until she decides who she is.
Director Andy Tennant masterfully uses music to contribute to the theme. With the use of songs such as "Sweet Home Alabama," "What This World Needs Is a Few More Rednecks," and "Marry Me," he transports you into the south. This music prompts you to root for the south and the southern girl who has just returned home. Tennant, also, impressively did not over use the song "Sweet Home Alabama." He used the song only in the situations were it would make the largest impact.
Tennant shows in "Sweet Home Alabama", as he did in "Ever After", that love just happens and we can't control love any more than we can control who we really are. In "Sweet Home Alabama", all of Melanie's problems seem to stem from the fact that she cannot face who she really is. Her father sum's up the theme of the movie in one statement, "You can't ride two horses with one ass, sugar bean."