Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

Really Surprised!

Boring

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

This small budget Canadian production shot in and around Toronto has acquired something of a cult status due to the untimely death of its young star. Andre Noble as young gay male Cliff exudes a kind of sheepish naiveté as he turns 18 and seeks to explore his sexuality.The film is a character study of young Cliff who gets into the underside of the gay world in his coming out by hooking up with street hustler Brendan Fehr. The two of them help each other out in many ways until tragedy strikes on the film as well as in real life.Playing another street kid is former Power Ranger Jeffrey Parazzo. The former White Ranger from the Dino Thunder edition gets a chance to bare all for art.Only the fact that Andre Noble did not break into the big market with a popular TV series or big budget movie success has not gained him the fame of a River Phoenix. Accidentally ingesting some kind of deadly poison that grows wild in his native Newfoundland is one of the freakiest demises I've ever read about. Still Sugar is going to be his premature epitaph.No great production values in Sugar, but the cast performs well and knowing about what happened to young Mr. Noble brings an additional poignancy to his performance that could not be anticipated.

This film is definitely not one for the faint hearted, nor is it blockbuster material. And yet, I was pleasantly surprised. I thought Sugar was phenomenally realistic and avant-garde. The cast was amazing. Noble and Fehr make a fantastic duo, the latter did a -great- job of representing the bad influence that your mother always warned you about. Noble shows his innocence on his sleeve so well, which feeds off Fehr's "bad boy" outer shell fantastically.I think the thing I most admire of this film is the sheer blunt truth of it all. Albeit a little odd, it reveals the struggle so many gays (even straight people) have gone through with eye-bludgeoning scenes and characters you see everyday in your hometown.Despite the outlandish outlook of it all, I find it unbelievably easy to relate to. Eight out of ten.

Like other people, I was fearful this might be some primitive low-budget movie, but it was delightful. It's a good-looking movie, and all of the acting is extremely naturalistic and believable. There isn't a false note in the work of any of the actors. All this, despite the multitudinous examples of wit in inherently ironic and humorous scenes and dialogue.I loved the unexpected bits of humor with the great Maury Chaykin, who was much the same, and equally delightful, in his roles in "Due South." And when Brendan Fehr is giving people the lines of bull they want to hear it is so funny and such a treat. I love the role-playing scene with all the dialogue about sports practice.This has the edginess of Bruce La Bruce's own films, but, thankfully, this never crosses the line between transgression and disgust or repulsion. It's full of scenes and images I would never think of seeing or putting on screen. It's like seeing Spike Lee's "Do the Right Thing," for the first time. It's a new world, all fresh.I had to turn the volume way up and rewind in order to catch some very quiet, very important bits of dialogue. This movie certainly combines the boisterous with the poetic.And, yes, Brendan Fehr is insanely attractive and mesmerizing. I was worried whether I would like this for the first couple of minutes of the film, and then he came on screen and was there for most of the film, lifting the whole thing up. This is a real actor, bringing presence and intelligence to a role. He is, in every sense, magnetic.

I was blown away by this film.So many of the characters reminded me of people I grew up with during my middle / high school years.. the drugs and all.There is nothing "pretty" or "whitewashed" about this film, It presents the audience with an accurate look into the lives of gay street kids & their lives.The way they live, love, and die...This is the kind of film I was truly surprised that a major chain like Blockbuster would carry.Wheither you're gay bi or straight, drug user, or straight-edger, there is something everyone can learn from SUGAR.