NEW Something New (DVD)

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS MOVIE!!! Some of the reviews I've seen or read recently make it seem like this movie isn't of substance. That is simply not the case!! It doesn't pick on white people or any of that nonsense that I've read here. It deals with the real issues and feelings of today's single, educated, and accomplished black woman who just wants to be respected in the work place and loved, cherished and valued at home; truly and honestly loved for who SHE is!

This movie deals honestly and delicately with the REAL emotions a black woman may feel when she finds herself falling in love with a man that doesn't look like her or comes from a socioeconomic background different from hers. I appreciated the fact that this movie didn't gloss over those issues because in real interracial relationships, those issues are confronted head on, not ignored as if they don't exist. THIS MOVIE IS A WINNER & WORTH CHECKING OUT!!!

P.S.

Just because a black person is well educated and highly accomplished does NOT mean that she hasn't experienced racism or doesn't deal with it on a daily basis!! Being black doesn't suddenly disappear when one acquires success. I think this movie did a wonderful job at revealing this reality that many of us already know about all too well. I could completely relate to the main character's frustration with this.

This movie certainly has sparked a great deal of dialogue on internet message boards--good and bad. Personally, I absolutely loved this film and have seen it more than once. Sanaa Lathan and Simon Baker give very believeable and heartfelt performances of two people from different races and backgrounds falling in love. It is simply a joy to watch this love story unfold. I really enjoyed the supporting cast and especially the banter among her girlfriends. I look forward with great anticipation to the DVD release, and can only hope that Focus Features will include the deleted scenes.

"Something New" is a romantic comedy with a social agenda. Kenya McQueen (Sanaa Lathan) is a workaholic investment banker with no time or patience for men. She yearns for companionship but has impossibly high -and very specific- standards. Urged by her friends to loosen up and "let go" of her concept of the ideal man, she agrees to a blind date arranged by a co-worker. If only the date were colorblind too. Kenya is set up with Brian Kelley (Simon Baker), a handsome, easy-going landscape architect who abandoned his corporate career to go into business doing what he loves. But Brian is white. Kenya is black. And white men are at the top of the list of things Kenya doesn't do. But she does need a landscaper for her new backyard. So she hires Brian, and their mutual attraction blossoms -to the variable horror and curiosity of Kenya's friends and family.

The moral of the story is that social conventions don't always know best in matters of the heart: You might find the companion you seek if you are open to other possibilities. Kenya and Brian's story is predictable, but Sanaa Lathan and Simon Baker are attractive and interesting to watch. The greater social insight of the film may be in Kenya's coterie of friends, all upper-middle class professional black women who fret over the dearth of suitable black men available to them. Their predicament and their views of men and race are interesting from the perspective of an outsider. White members of the audience will doubt Brian's willingness to tolerate the enormous chip Kenya carries on her shoulder. And he is more tolerant and self-sacrificing in the face of Kenya's self-absorption than is believable. But romantic comedies require some suspension of disbelief, and "Something New" is entertaining.

The DVD (Universal 2006): In "The Do's and Don'ts of Dating" (5 min), 8 members of the cast give their do's and don'ts of dating and relationships. "The Making of Something New" (11 min) features interviews with director Sanaa Hamri, writer Kriss Turner, producer Stephanie Allain, and the cast in which they talk about making the film and discuss the film's themes. Subtitles are available for the film in English SDH, Spanish, and French.