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Something New Review

Release Date: Feb 03, 2006
Rated: sexual references
Runtime: 1 hr. 40 min.
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Director:Sanaa Hamri
Cast:Sanaa Lathan, Simon Baker, Mike Epps, Donald Faison, Blair Underwood. Full cast + crew

Movies.com Critics

4.5

Dave White Profile <h3>Dave White</h3> <p><strong>Your Movies.com Man at the Multiplex</strong></p> <br /> <p>Dave White's first movie review was of the animated feature Snoopy Come Home. He was seven years old...<a href="http://www.movies.com/movie-reviews/dave-white">Read full profile</a></p>

… genuinely lovey-dovey … Read full review

Other Critics provided by Metacritic.com

Critics scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

4.0

64

out of 100

Metascore^®
Generally favorable reviews
based on a weighted average of all
critic review scores.
58

out of 100

Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum
A shaky piece of work, with stumpy cinematography, choppy edits, speechy dialogue, and loose plotlines. And yet: There's an easygoing authenticity to the depiction of Kenya and her world that coexists with the picture's many weaknesses.

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70

out of 100

The Hollywood Reporter Michael Rechtshaffen
A keenly observed urban romantic comedy.

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75

out of 100

USA Today Mike Clark
The story's presentation is easy to take. And lot of this is because of Lathan, who is funny by not trying to be.

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75

out of 100

Chicago Tribune
Thanks to Hamri's light touch and the considerable chemistry between Lathan and Baker, it's easy to forgive these missteps--leaving the film plenty of goodwill to spare.

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88

out of 100

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
Something New delivers all the usual pleasures of a love story, and something more. The movie respects its subject and characters, and is more complex about race than we could possibly expect.

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See all Something New reviews at Metacritic.com

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For Families provided by Common Sense Media

Iffy for 13+

Romantic dramedy tackles serious themes.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that this romantic comedy takes up a serious theme, the tensions that emerge in interracial dating. It features sexual references and situations, including a couple of gentle kissing scenes and one gently framed sex scene (body parts and faces in close-up). Characters use slang for intercourse and genitalia (e.g., "hoochie," "bone"). At a comedy club, the routine, focused on interracial dating, includes jokes about the DC Sniper and white men being serial killers. Characters drink at parties and at dinner.

Families can talk about Kenya's dilemma: how does her fear of "something new" limit her experience? How is her relationship with Brian affected by comments by her parents, her friends, and her younger brother? How do attitudes toward interracial relationships change over generations?

The good stuff

Messages: Not an issue

What to watch for

Violence: Not an issue
Sex: Partial nudity, but in very close shots; several sweet kissing scenes; the single sex scene is tasteful; sexual allusions ("pleasuring myself," "magic hoochie," "Can he bone?") and slang for interracial dating ("skiing the slopes," "sleeping with the enemy," "jungle gardening"); rowdy comedy club routine on interracial dating.
Language: Some profanity ("hell," s-word) and slang for genitalia and sexual activity.
Consumerism: USA Today, Starbucks, Verizon, Enyce, Dell laptop.
Drinking, drugs and smoking: Drinking at parties and in restaurants.

Common Sense Media

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