Brown Sugar
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation | Release Date: October 11, 2002 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
58
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 28 Critic Reviews
Positive:
17
Mixed:
10
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
75
New York Daily NewsJami Bernard
The vitality of the hip-hop scene serves as both backdrop and metaphor in a romantic comedy as sweet as its title. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
May be pitching itself to the wrong audience. The ads promise: "The Rhythm ... the Beat ... the Love ... and You Don't Stop!" But it's not a musical and although it's sometimes a comedy, it's observant about its people. Read full review
75
Seattle Post-IntelligencerSean Axmaker
Hip-hop is not the beat I dance to, but you don't need to be immersed in the culture to understand the heartbeat it sets in the lives of Brown Sugar's main characters. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
What Brown Sugar lacks in originality, it makes up for in charm. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie Rickey
Sweet. The pun is unavoidable. It's the only adjective that fully captures the flavor of the romantic comedy Brown Sugar. Read full review
75
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
All are watchable, attractive people who haven't worn out their welcomes. But if they continue to go round and round like this, they may. Aren't more African -American actors waiting in the wings to play romantic leads? Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleCarla Meyer
Delightful love story. Read full review
75
Baltimore SunStaff (Not credited)
Breaks no new ground in romantic comedy. But it finds ways to make the tried and true scenes -- a hilarious break-up in a restaurant, a nearly disrupted wedding -- new and funny.
70
Chicago ReaderJ.R. Jones
Smart and consistently funny, with sharp performances. Read full review
70
The A.V. ClubNathan Rabin
A good cast, terrific soundtrack, and genial spirit all help the film go down smoothly. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesKevin Thomas
Proves as appealing as its title. Read full review
70
Wall Street JournalJoe Morgenstern
This isn't great filmmaking, but, under Rick Famuyiwa's direction, it's more than good enough.
70
Washington PostAnn Hornaday
May not be the most nutritious movie on the table, but it lives up to its sweet promise. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleKimberley Jones
With all its emphasis on beat, Brown Sugar can't maintain a steady one, yet when it finds it, the film surely soars. Read full review
63
Miami HeraldConnie Ogle
Hits the parallels between love and hip-hop a little too hard when the message is relatively easy to grasp: Don't sell out: not your art, not your heart. If only music business executives were listening. Read full review
63
Chicago TribuneRobert K. Elder
Ambitious, yes. Does it work? Not really. While it's genuinely cool to hear characters talk about early rap records (Sugar Hill Gang, etc.), the constant referencing of hip-hop arcana can alienate even the savviest audiences. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Liam Lacey
Exist as extended videos for the accompanying soul and rap soundtrack. Read full review
60
Washington PostDesson Thomson
Isn't much more than another conveyer-belt romantic comedy. Read full review
60
The New York TimesDave Kehr
Sustains the charm of an early 60's New York romance. Read full review
58
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
As a love-jones soap opera, Brown Sugar feeds right into Dre's nostalgic crankiness. Read full review
50
New York PostJonathan Foreman
Represents a kind of progress. Where once only a few ultra-talented, lucky black filmmakers got to make big studio movies, now we have standard-issue Hollywood schlock that happens to be made by, about and for African-Americans. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeWesley Morris
Brown Sugar fails to produce an image of hip-hoppery as fascinating and complex as the moment when Halle Berry set her tongue wagging during a ghetto-fabulous grind with Warren Beatty in ''Bulworth.'' Read full review
50
Film ThreatRick Kisonak
The plot is romantic comedy boilerplate from start to finish and, with the story's outcome a foregone conclusion, the least the director could have done is throw in a bit of cultural enlightenment to keep the audience occupied while he connects the dots. Read full review
50
VarietyTodd McCarthy
As eye and ear candy, pic has its modest pleasures, beginning with the attractive Diggs and Lathan. Read full review
50
SalonCharles Taylor
The new black movies make those of us sitting in the theater watching feel as if we actually count for something. That good feeling can carry you through this movie's silly and dull patches. Read full review
40
L.A. WeeklyChuck Wilson
Despite crisp photography and the director's gift for building a scene, the film doesn't click until the third act, when Mos Def's performance as Dre's protégé appears to energize everyone around him. Read full review
40
TV Guide MagazineAngel Cohn
Given the film's focus on the importance of hip-hop, its soundtrack -- crammed with current artists though it is -- doesn't make the impression it should. Read full review
30
Village VoiceMichael Miller
Draws a belabored association between romance and hip-hop, and it's hard not to wish the parallel lines would hurry up and converge. Read full review
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