Something New (2006/I)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Sanaa Hamri

Writer (WGA):

Kriss Turner (written by)

Release Date:

29 January 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

She had it all under control. Except her heart

Plot:

Kenya McQueen, a corporate lawyer finds love in the most unexpected place when she agrees to go on a blind date with Brian Kelly, a sexy and free-spirited landscaper.

Plot Keywords:

Blind Date | Landscaper | Friend | Partner | Heart

Awards:

2 wins & 10 nominations

Cast

Sanaa Lathan	...	Kenya Denise McQueen
Fuzzy Fantabulous	...	Himself (voice) (as DJ Fuzzy Fantabulous)
Katharine Towne	...	Leah Cahan
Stanley DeSantis	...	Jack Pino
K.C. Clyde	...	Waiter
Wendy Raquel Robinson	...	Cheryl
Golden Brooks	...	Suzette
Taraji P. Henson	...	Nedra
Marcus Brown	...	Rashid Mohammed
Russell Hornsby	...	Dr. Brockton
Simon Baker	...	Brian Kelly
Danny Wooten	...	Starbucks Employee
Mike Epps	...	Walter
Lee Garlington	...	Mrs. Cahan
Tonita Castro	...	Maria

Also Known As:

42.4 Percent (USA) (working title)
Bloom (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sexual references.

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:PG-13 | Singapore:PG | UK:PG | Australia:PG | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Gramercy Pictures (I)

Trivia:

Sanaa Lathan's character, Kenya, is the daughter of Alfre Woodard's character. They share the same relationship in Love & Basketball (2000) and also in The Family That Preys (2008).

Goofs:

Factual errors: At the beginning of the film, Kenya wakes up her PC, which is clearly a Dell, but it's running Mac OS X. The screen shows the telltale Finder icons on the right side of the screen and the desktop picture is one of the images that ships with OS X. A few shots later, the closeup of her calendar also shows the three "gel buttons" in the upper-left corner.

Quotes:

Kenya Denise McQueen: I don't do dogs.
Brian Kelly: Neither do I. We're just good friends.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Oprah Winfrey Show: (2006-03-08)" (2006)

Soundtrack:

Love

Finally, a romantic comedy I can pay full admission for and not regret it later

For about five years or better yet since I've been married, I have banned all modern day romantic comedies from my precious eyesight. Why you say? Because nine times out of ten they featured awkward pairings of big-name stars who had as much chemistry as a week old can of generic pop that was left in the refrigerator open, the plots were so insultingly predictable that you just wanted to take out a bull horn in Hollywood and yell to screenwriters and movie studios everywhere: "STOP INSULTING US BY RELYING ON YOUR FORMULAS TO MAKE YOUR MOVIES." Honestly, if I see one more chase scene to the airport to stop some chick from moving away, I'm going to blow something up, and finally romantic comedies were just plain unrealistic. I mean honestly, how many of us can believe that Jennifer Lopez, Diane Lane, and Julia Roberts are dateless. And how many women are really knocking down John Cusak's door to get a date? However, alas comes a true romantic comedy with depth, conviction, and heart. And while it did use a few formulas it did not depend on them. "Something New" features very real people, real responses, real dialogue, and most importantly real issues. I champion this movie for being groundbreaking and discussing things that no other (or few) mainstream film had the balls to tackle such as "The Black Tax," the true difference between racism and reverse racism, and Black hair culture to name a few. Don't get me wrong, THIS MOVIE IS NOT A BLACK MOVIE. It is definitely romantic and comedic at its very heart and it is something that can be appreciated by all. But I felt so much better about seeing this film when I realized that it took the time to think and bring some things to the forefront. I hate the fact that this movie was not marketed properly. What a misstep. This movie was for all because we have all had to grapple with pressures from our family, our careers, friends, and culture at one point or another and realize that being true to yourself is all that matters. Oh and by the way, the chemistry between Sanaa Lathan and Simon Baker is phenomenal! I haven't seen chemistry like that in a long, long time. The movie is worth the trip just to see that.