Brown Sugar

A winning friends-or-more romance with intelligent, down-to-earth characters and a melodious love-letter to the heart and soul of hip-hop, Brown Sugar signals director Rick Famuyiwa's emergence as an articulate, grownup voice in African-American (and cross-over) cinema. Far more mature and perceptive than recent stereotypical, battle-of-the-sexes "comedies" such as The Brothers and Two Can Play That Game, this film may not have the most original plot--in the midst of plans to marry other people, two lifelong best friends (Taye Diggs and Sanaa Lathan) finally realize they're meant for each other--but the story is built around smart, appealing, multi-dimensional characters whose romantic (and other) problems are neither simplistic nor easily resolved. Plus, their lives revolve around hip-hop (he's a record exec, she's a music journalist), which serves as a platform for the film's underlying warm nostalgia about the music genre's birth in 1980s New York. While the picture may be imperfect, you can truly feel the love--and the love of music here. Recommended. [Note: DVD extras include both full and widescreen versions, audio commentary by director Rick Famuyiwa and editor Dirk Westervelt, four deleted scenes with optional commentary, the music videos “Love of My Life (An Ode to Hip Hop)” by Erykah Badu featuring Common and “Brown Sugar (Extra Sweet)” by Mos Def featuring Faith Evans, a promo spot and trailers. Bottom line: a sweet extras package for a soulful film.] (R. Blackwelder)