| View Larger Image | Sugar | DVDStarring: Algenis Perez Soto, Rayniel Rufino, Andre Holland, Ann Whitney, Ellary Porterfield
Directed By: Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck
Also With: Anna Boden (Producer), Anna Boden (Writer), Ryan Fleck (Writer), Denton Hanna (Producer), Jamie Patricof (Producer), Jeremy Kipp Walker (Producer)
| List Price: | $28.96 | | Price: | $22.49 | | You Save: | $6.47 (22%) | | | Available: | Usually ships in 24 hours |
| | Binding: | DVD | | Rating: |  | | Run Time: | 120 minutes | | Format: | AC-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC | | Studio: | Sony Pictures | | Number of Discs: | 1 | | Aspect Ratio: | 1.77:1 | | Release Date: | September 01, 2009 | | Sales Rank: | 5,994th |
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EDITORIAL REVIEWS |
Description
Sugar is the inspirational story of Miguel Santos, a gifted pitcher struggling to make it to the big leagues of American baseball. Nicknamed "Azúcar" (Spanish for "sugar"), 19-year-old Miguel travels from his poor but tightly-knit community in the Dominican Republic to play minor league baseball in the United States - where anything is possible. He finds himself in a small Iowa town, where he struggles with the culture, the language, and the pressure of knowing that only his success can rescue his family. "It's very real and has a really good message." -Pedro Martinez "A great film!" -Robinson Cano |
Amazon.com
An astute if low-key drama from the creative team behind Half Nelson, Sugar is an engrossing story about a young Dominican man who comes to the U.S. to play baseball, only to find himself pursuing a different destiny. Algenis Perez Soto plays Miguel, also known as "Sugar" because of his sweet appeal to girls. A dedicated ballplayer in the Dominican Republic, Miguel's family pins its hopes on his future success as a pitcher for a major league team. Miguel is recruited by a Kansas City club and sent to a farm team in Iowa. There, he makes a huge impression until injuring an ankle, after which his confidence is rattled and things go from bad to worse on the field. Directors Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden shoot some excellent baseball action footage, including a magnificent shot that begins with Miguel on the pitcher's mound in silent prayer, then gradually opening to the fullness and energy of a ballpark just before an opening pitch. The story, however, is just as much about not playing baseball, about discovering life after old goals are more or less within reach. Throughout Miguel's highs and lows, we see him adapt, in dozens of small ways, to a new country--turning American, really. Sugar's final act unexpectedly shifts the action to a very different but logical locale. There, we witness Miguel making a different set of choices than the ones he always thought he wanted--becoming a whole person, with losses as well as gains, in the process. --Tom Keogh Stills from Sugar (Click for larger image) |
CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 3.5 based on 12 reviews)
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Sugar is Sweet! by Uli (Bronx, New York)  4 Stars
November 24, 2009
I really liked this movie. It gave us a sneak peek at what goes down in these Dominican baseball camps. The actors were so natural. Argelis did not show one sign that he is a rookie in acting. This is his first film. He was auditioned right on the set. In my opinion he did a great job and played the part perfectly. The movie is sad and if we put ourselves in Sugar's shoes we will see that life is not easy. I am bummed that this movie was not PG13 rating on the blue ray. I had to get the dvd version to enjoy it. I believe the R rated stuff was not necesary and should have been cut from the get go. The scenes are totally irrelevant to the movie. Also, I believe the ending could have been better. It just ended so suddenly, without any further explanation of how Sugar adapted to NY.
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DVD version is BUTCHERED by Cody Clarke (Brooklyn, NY)  1 Stars
November 17, 2009
PREFACE: This 1-star review is not of the film Sugar (as I have yet to even see it) but of the decision that was made to cut this film down from an R to a PG-13 for its DVD release.
Sugar was released theatrically with an R, and is on Blu-Ray with an R, but the DVD version has been sanitized into a PG-13 order to reach a 'wider market.' This so-called 'wider market' neglects grown-ups and teens who are allowed to see R-rated movies and don't own a Blu-Ray player, when in actuality, such a demographic is the WIDEST market!
Blu-Ray is not the standard yet. One day it will be, but it is not yet what the majority of people own. This was an atrocious marketing decision, as was the studio's decision to castrate one of the BEST-REVIEWED movies of the year.
There have been sanitized versions of films released on DVD in the past, but always alongside a separate unrated or theatrical version. However, this is the FIRST time, in my memory, that a sanitized version has been released on a format ONLY. Think about it like this-- this is the equivalent of Huckleberry Finn being only available abridged in print form, and only available unabridged on Amazon Kindle. It's insane, it's anti-art, it's anti-artist.
The word needs to be spread. Standing idly by will only mean more films receiving this same unfair treatment in the future. If you disagree with such practice, vote that this review was helpful, and post a review of your own.
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Sugar not sticky sweet by Herr D (Boston) 4 Stars
November 14, 2009
Good film showing culture clash in the US. Problems definitely not limited to the Dominican population. I would have enjoyed more scenes of family life in the DR. Acting was natural and not the quality expected from many amateurs. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
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A powerful and moving reflection on the American dream, baseball, and the immigrant experience by Nathan Andersen (Florida) 4 Stars
November 10, 2009
Miguel Santos, aka "Sugar," is an ambitious young Dominican kid with a dream to make it big in baseball. When he gets picked for the minor leagues in America, he knows it's just a matter of time before he is a household name and superstar. It turns out big dreams and talent are a dime a dozen in baseball, and while the pressure to succeed is enormous, there's always someone waiting in the wings to replace those who falter.
Sugar is a simple film, well told, about the American dream and the outsourcing of the so-called American sport, baseball. It starts out seeming like a classic sports success story of the underdog making his mark, along the lines of Rocky or The Karate Kid but with an international twist. It turns out to be something much more interesting and unexpected, a meditation on America from the perspective of the outsider coming in, and a new look at the immigrant experience, that manages to be both realistic and hopeful and uniquely unpredictable. This is very intelligent filmmaking, a powerful sophomore feature by the talented directing and screenwriting team of Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, who traveled to the Dominican Republic and spoke with several whose stories resemble the one they depicted here in order to create a very authentic, true-to-life story, that is very different than their also compelling debut feature Half Nelson. Algenis Perez Soto does an incredible job as Miguel, immersing himself completely into the character of a soft spoken but confident young baseball player. The look and style are simple and direct, and the entire focus here is on character and story. Highly recommended.
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Baseball and the American Dream by D. Franklin 4 Stars
October 31, 2009
I enjoyed this quite a bit, particularly for where it goes, which is perplexing at first but ultimately satisfying. This is in part because much of the time, we don't know what the central character is thinking. We can feel the pressure he is under and thus can understand something about both professional baseball and the experience of being in a new country.
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