Honey
Opens
Friday, Dec. 5
The girl's gotta dance -- and meets little resistance -- in this hip-hop take on an age-old theme. With its (Toronto-shot) New York flavor and echoes of "Flashdance", "Fame" and "Saturday Night Fever", "Honey" flirts with the shadows but is a decidedly upbeat number, centered on a good-hearted character determined to realize her dreams without selling her soul. As counterprogramming to the season's more serious fare, the film could find a niche with younger audiences who haven't seen the birth-of-a-star scenario countless times. Its fashion parade and lessons in self-esteem should click especially with teenage girls.
Jessica Alba of the series "Dark Angel" stars as 22-year-old Honey, who is juggling jobs and dreaming of dance glory when she's discovered by a smarmy music-video producer, Michael (David Moscow). She breathes new life into the hip-hop moves on a Jadakiss & Sheek video, and in no time Michael has promoted her to choreographer to the stars -- among them Tweet, Ginuwine and a comically mouthy Missy Elliott.
Honey leaves behind not only her bartending and record-store gigs but also the hip-hop dance class she taught at a Bronx youth center run by her mother (Lonette McKee). Although Mom would rather she teach ballet and see the world, Honey's heart is with the neighborhood kids, whose dancing provides joyful release from daily disappointment. When the center's future looks uncertain, the suddenly well-paid Honey embarks on a plan to buy a building and create a new place for the kids.
The film moves through its formula paces with energy, seldom stopping long enough to let dramatic complexities interfere with the spirited music. Scripters Alonzo Brown and Kim Watson find a poetic charge in flavorful slang, but that doesn't disguise the dialogue's clunky exposition. More problematic is that every conflict or setback is resolved with a minimum of friction, whether it's Honey's inevitable clash with Michael or a young boy's stint in juvie.
Alba is a personable performer with good-natured appeal. It's largely a reflection of the script and direction that her performance, along with that of most of the cast, is only CD-deep; the writers and first-time feature director Bille Woodruff, a music-video vet, aim not to stir the soul but to give it a pep talk.
As Honey's wisecracking best friend, Joy Bryant ("Antwone Fisher") makes an impression delivering most of the good lines, and Mekhi Phifer does what he can with the role of Honey's ultrasupportive, platitude-spouting boyfriend. The most riveting performances are those of 14-year-old recording star Lil' Romeo, making his big-screen debut, and 8-year-old Zachary Isaiah Williams. As brothers who inspire Honey's big-sisterly instincts, they own every scene they're in.
For all its reveling in dance -- there are more than 90 credited dancers -- the film suffers from an overeagerness to make the action compelling, with uncertain camera placement and frantic editing at times serving to distract rather than enhance. The choreography by Laurie Ann Gibson (who has a small part as Honey's evil rival) ranges from a baffling and lifeless Tweet video, with its robotic moves and incongruous Flying by Foy, to the exuberant freestyling of the kids in Honey's class. The highlight is the kids' rehearsal for a Ginuwine video: Shot simply, the scene boasts terrific dancing and the story's most powerful dramatic moment.
HONEY
Universal Pictures
A Marc Platt/Nuamerica production
Credits:
Director: Bille Woodruff
Screenwriters: Alonzo Brown, Kim Watson
Producers: Marc Platt, Andre Harrell
Executive producer: Billy Higgins
Director of photography: John R. Leonetti
Production designer: Jasna Stefanovich
Music: Mervyn Warren
Costume designer: Susan Matheson
Editors: Mark Helfrich, Emma E. Hickox
Cast:
Honey Daniels: Jessica Alba
Chaz: Mekhi Phifer
Benny: Lil' Romeo
Gina: Joy Bryant
Michael Ellis: David Moscow
Mrs. Daniels: Lonette McKee
Raymond: Zachary Isaiah Williams
Katrina: Laurie Ann Gibson
As themselves: Missy Elliott, Jadakiss & Sheek, Shawn Desman, Ginuwine, Harmonica Sunbeam, Rodney Jerkins, Silkk, 3rd Storee, Tweet
Running time -- 94 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13>Emma: Dina Waters
Michael: Marc John Jefferies
Megan: Aree Davis
Running time -- 88 minutes
MPAA rating: PG...
Friday, Dec. 5
The girl's gotta dance -- and meets little resistance -- in this hip-hop take on an age-old theme. With its (Toronto-shot) New York flavor and echoes of "Flashdance", "Fame" and "Saturday Night Fever", "Honey" flirts with the shadows but is a decidedly upbeat number, centered on a good-hearted character determined to realize her dreams without selling her soul. As counterprogramming to the season's more serious fare, the film could find a niche with younger audiences who haven't seen the birth-of-a-star scenario countless times. Its fashion parade and lessons in self-esteem should click especially with teenage girls.
Jessica Alba of the series "Dark Angel" stars as 22-year-old Honey, who is juggling jobs and dreaming of dance glory when she's discovered by a smarmy music-video producer, Michael (David Moscow). She breathes new life into the hip-hop moves on a Jadakiss & Sheek video, and in no time Michael has promoted her to choreographer to the stars -- among them Tweet, Ginuwine and a comically mouthy Missy Elliott.
Honey leaves behind not only her bartending and record-store gigs but also the hip-hop dance class she taught at a Bronx youth center run by her mother (Lonette McKee). Although Mom would rather she teach ballet and see the world, Honey's heart is with the neighborhood kids, whose dancing provides joyful release from daily disappointment. When the center's future looks uncertain, the suddenly well-paid Honey embarks on a plan to buy a building and create a new place for the kids.
The film moves through its formula paces with energy, seldom stopping long enough to let dramatic complexities interfere with the spirited music. Scripters Alonzo Brown and Kim Watson find a poetic charge in flavorful slang, but that doesn't disguise the dialogue's clunky exposition. More problematic is that every conflict or setback is resolved with a minimum of friction, whether it's Honey's inevitable clash with Michael or a young boy's stint in juvie.
Alba is a personable performer with good-natured appeal. It's largely a reflection of the script and direction that her performance, along with that of most of the cast, is only CD-deep; the writers and first-time feature director Bille Woodruff, a music-video vet, aim not to stir the soul but to give it a pep talk.
As Honey's wisecracking best friend, Joy Bryant ("Antwone Fisher") makes an impression delivering most of the good lines, and Mekhi Phifer does what he can with the role of Honey's ultrasupportive, platitude-spouting boyfriend. The most riveting performances are those of 14-year-old recording star Lil' Romeo, making his big-screen debut, and 8-year-old Zachary Isaiah Williams. As brothers who inspire Honey's big-sisterly instincts, they own every scene they're in.
For all its reveling in dance -- there are more than 90 credited dancers -- the film suffers from an overeagerness to make the action compelling, with uncertain camera placement and frantic editing at times serving to distract rather than enhance. The choreography by Laurie Ann Gibson (who has a small part as Honey's evil rival) ranges from a baffling and lifeless Tweet video, with its robotic moves and incongruous Flying by Foy, to the exuberant freestyling of the kids in Honey's class. The highlight is the kids' rehearsal for a Ginuwine video: Shot simply, the scene boasts terrific dancing and the story's most powerful dramatic moment.
HONEY
Universal Pictures
A Marc Platt/Nuamerica production
Credits:
Director: Bille Woodruff
Screenwriters: Alonzo Brown, Kim Watson
Producers: Marc Platt, Andre Harrell
Executive producer: Billy Higgins
Director of photography: John R. Leonetti
Production designer: Jasna Stefanovich
Music: Mervyn Warren
Costume designer: Susan Matheson
Editors: Mark Helfrich, Emma E. Hickox
Cast:
Honey Daniels: Jessica Alba
Chaz: Mekhi Phifer
Benny: Lil' Romeo
Gina: Joy Bryant
Michael Ellis: David Moscow
Mrs. Daniels: Lonette McKee
Raymond: Zachary Isaiah Williams
Katrina: Laurie Ann Gibson
As themselves: Missy Elliott, Jadakiss & Sheek, Shawn Desman, Ginuwine, Harmonica Sunbeam, Rodney Jerkins, Silkk, 3rd Storee, Tweet
Running time -- 94 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13>Emma: Dina Waters
Michael: Marc John Jefferies
Megan: Aree Davis
Running time -- 88 minutes
MPAA rating: PG...
- 7/9/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Honey
Opens
Friday, Dec. 5
The girl's gotta dance -- and meets little resistance -- in this hip-hop take on an age-old theme. With its (Toronto-shot) New York flavor and echoes of "Flashdance", "Fame" and "Saturday Night Fever", "Honey" flirts with the shadows but is a decidedly upbeat number, centered on a good-hearted character determined to realize her dreams without selling her soul. As counterprogramming to the season's more serious fare, the film could find a niche with younger audiences who haven't seen the birth-of-a-star scenario countless times. Its fashion parade and lessons in self-esteem should click especially with teenage girls.
Jessica Alba of the series "Dark Angel" stars as 22-year-old Honey, who is juggling jobs and dreaming of dance glory when she's discovered by a smarmy music-video producer, Michael (David Moscow). She breathes new life into the hip-hop moves on a Jadakiss & Sheek video, and in no time Michael has promoted her to choreographer to the stars -- among them Tweet, Ginuwine and a comically mouthy Missy Elliott.
Honey leaves behind not only her bartending and record-store gigs but also the hip-hop dance class she taught at a Bronx youth center run by her mother (Lonette McKee). Although Mom would rather she teach ballet and see the world, Honey's heart is with the neighborhood kids, whose dancing provides joyful release from daily disappointment. When the center's future looks uncertain, the suddenly well-paid Honey embarks on a plan to buy a building and create a new place for the kids.
The film moves through its formula paces with energy, seldom stopping long enough to let dramatic complexities interfere with the spirited music. Scripters Alonzo Brown and Kim Watson find a poetic charge in flavorful slang, but that doesn't disguise the dialogue's clunky exposition. More problematic is that every conflict or setback is resolved with a minimum of friction, whether it's Honey's inevitable clash with Michael or a young boy's stint in juvie.
Alba is a personable performer with good-natured appeal. It's largely a reflection of the script and direction that her performance, along with that of most of the cast, is only CD-deep; the writers and first-time feature director Bille Woodruff, a music-video vet, aim not to stir the soul but to give it a pep talk.
As Honey's wisecracking best friend, Joy Bryant ("Antwone Fisher") makes an impression delivering most of the good lines, and Mekhi Phifer does what he can with the role of Honey's ultrasupportive, platitude-spouting boyfriend. The most riveting performances are those of 14-year-old recording star Lil' Romeo, making his big-screen debut, and 8-year-old Zachary Isaiah Williams. As brothers who inspire Honey's big-sisterly instincts, they own every scene they're in.
For all its reveling in dance -- there are more than 90 credited dancers -- the film suffers from an overeagerness to make the action compelling, with uncertain camera placement and frantic editing at times serving to distract rather than enhance. The choreography by Laurie Ann Gibson (who has a small part as Honey's evil rival) ranges from a baffling and lifeless Tweet video, with its robotic moves and incongruous Flying by Foy, to the exuberant freestyling of the kids in Honey's class. The highlight is the kids' rehearsal for a Ginuwine video: Shot simply, the scene boasts terrific dancing and the story's most powerful dramatic moment.
HONEY
Universal Pictures
A Marc Platt/Nuamerica production
Credits:
Director: Bille Woodruff
Screenwriters: Alonzo Brown, Kim Watson
Producers: Marc Platt, Andre Harrell
Executive producer: Billy Higgins
Director of photography: John R. Leonetti
Production designer: Jasna Stefanovich
Music: Mervyn Warren
Costume designer: Susan Matheson
Editors: Mark Helfrich, Emma E. Hickox
Cast:
Honey Daniels: Jessica Alba
Chaz: Mekhi Phifer
Benny: Lil' Romeo
Gina: Joy Bryant
Michael Ellis: David Moscow
Mrs. Daniels: Lonette McKee
Raymond: Zachary Isaiah Williams
Katrina: Laurie Ann Gibson
As themselves: Missy Elliott, Jadakiss & Sheek, Shawn Desman, Ginuwine, Harmonica Sunbeam, Rodney Jerkins, Silkk, 3rd Storee, Tweet
Running time -- 94 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13>Emma: Dina Waters
Michael: Marc John Jefferies
Megan: Aree Davis
Running time -- 88 minutes
MPAA rating: PG...
Friday, Dec. 5
The girl's gotta dance -- and meets little resistance -- in this hip-hop take on an age-old theme. With its (Toronto-shot) New York flavor and echoes of "Flashdance", "Fame" and "Saturday Night Fever", "Honey" flirts with the shadows but is a decidedly upbeat number, centered on a good-hearted character determined to realize her dreams without selling her soul. As counterprogramming to the season's more serious fare, the film could find a niche with younger audiences who haven't seen the birth-of-a-star scenario countless times. Its fashion parade and lessons in self-esteem should click especially with teenage girls.
Jessica Alba of the series "Dark Angel" stars as 22-year-old Honey, who is juggling jobs and dreaming of dance glory when she's discovered by a smarmy music-video producer, Michael (David Moscow). She breathes new life into the hip-hop moves on a Jadakiss & Sheek video, and in no time Michael has promoted her to choreographer to the stars -- among them Tweet, Ginuwine and a comically mouthy Missy Elliott.
Honey leaves behind not only her bartending and record-store gigs but also the hip-hop dance class she taught at a Bronx youth center run by her mother (Lonette McKee). Although Mom would rather she teach ballet and see the world, Honey's heart is with the neighborhood kids, whose dancing provides joyful release from daily disappointment. When the center's future looks uncertain, the suddenly well-paid Honey embarks on a plan to buy a building and create a new place for the kids.
The film moves through its formula paces with energy, seldom stopping long enough to let dramatic complexities interfere with the spirited music. Scripters Alonzo Brown and Kim Watson find a poetic charge in flavorful slang, but that doesn't disguise the dialogue's clunky exposition. More problematic is that every conflict or setback is resolved with a minimum of friction, whether it's Honey's inevitable clash with Michael or a young boy's stint in juvie.
Alba is a personable performer with good-natured appeal. It's largely a reflection of the script and direction that her performance, along with that of most of the cast, is only CD-deep; the writers and first-time feature director Bille Woodruff, a music-video vet, aim not to stir the soul but to give it a pep talk.
As Honey's wisecracking best friend, Joy Bryant ("Antwone Fisher") makes an impression delivering most of the good lines, and Mekhi Phifer does what he can with the role of Honey's ultrasupportive, platitude-spouting boyfriend. The most riveting performances are those of 14-year-old recording star Lil' Romeo, making his big-screen debut, and 8-year-old Zachary Isaiah Williams. As brothers who inspire Honey's big-sisterly instincts, they own every scene they're in.
For all its reveling in dance -- there are more than 90 credited dancers -- the film suffers from an overeagerness to make the action compelling, with uncertain camera placement and frantic editing at times serving to distract rather than enhance. The choreography by Laurie Ann Gibson (who has a small part as Honey's evil rival) ranges from a baffling and lifeless Tweet video, with its robotic moves and incongruous Flying by Foy, to the exuberant freestyling of the kids in Honey's class. The highlight is the kids' rehearsal for a Ginuwine video: Shot simply, the scene boasts terrific dancing and the story's most powerful dramatic moment.
HONEY
Universal Pictures
A Marc Platt/Nuamerica production
Credits:
Director: Bille Woodruff
Screenwriters: Alonzo Brown, Kim Watson
Producers: Marc Platt, Andre Harrell
Executive producer: Billy Higgins
Director of photography: John R. Leonetti
Production designer: Jasna Stefanovich
Music: Mervyn Warren
Costume designer: Susan Matheson
Editors: Mark Helfrich, Emma E. Hickox
Cast:
Honey Daniels: Jessica Alba
Chaz: Mekhi Phifer
Benny: Lil' Romeo
Gina: Joy Bryant
Michael Ellis: David Moscow
Mrs. Daniels: Lonette McKee
Raymond: Zachary Isaiah Williams
Katrina: Laurie Ann Gibson
As themselves: Missy Elliott, Jadakiss & Sheek, Shawn Desman, Ginuwine, Harmonica Sunbeam, Rodney Jerkins, Silkk, 3rd Storee, Tweet
Running time -- 94 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13>Emma: Dina Waters
Michael: Marc John Jefferies
Megan: Aree Davis
Running time -- 88 minutes
MPAA rating: PG...
- 12/5/2003
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Mekhi Phifer will star opposite Jessica Alba in Universal Pictures' Honey, with music video director Bille Woodruff making his feature directorial debut, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Written by Alonzo Brown and Kim Watson, the film is a music-driven coming-of-age drama about a sexy and tough yet vulnerable inner-city woman (Alba). Production begins Sept. 9 in Toronto.
- 8/22/2002
- IMDbPro News
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