Sonny

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Sonny

R

2002

1h 50m

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

21%

Tomatometer

28 Reviews

41%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

After a stint in the army, former male prostitute Sonny Phillips (James Franco) returns to his home in a run-down New Orleans in search of a stable life. However, the financial difficulties faced by his mother, Jewel (Brenda Blethyn), who is also a prostitute, make escaping his former life difficult. With few job prospects, Sonny reluctantly begins working the streets. The only bright spot in his otherwise difficult life is his relationship with Carol (Mena Suvari), Jewel's new protégé.

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Critics Consensus

Sonny is sunk by debuting director Nicolas Cage's evident inability to locate the heart of his movie's story - or properly modulate his cast's performances.

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Glenn Kenny

Premiere Magazine

Too defensive and earnest about its topic to be either fun or illuminating.

Rated: 1/4

Sep 17, 2003

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Jan Stuart

Newsday

Actors generally make good actor's directors, but Sonny is a mixed bag in that department.

Rated: 2/4

Dec 27, 2002

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Michael Agger

Slate

Nicolas Cage isn't the first actor to lead a group of talented friends astray, and this movie won't create a ruffle in what is already an erratic career.

Dec 27, 2002

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Daniel Barnes

Dare Daniel

Cage the director makes as many baffling decisions as Cage the actor, but the effect is significantly less entertaining. Sonny is low-lighted by a full-tilt boogie turn from an impossibly brassy Brenda Blethyn that simply took my "Bleth" away.

Rated: 1/5

Aug 8, 2023

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Chase Burns

The Stranger (Seattle, WA)

...this film is impossibly white, like Elvis's King Creole. New Orleans is a Black city, but you wouldn't know it from watching Cage's NOLA...

Dec 9, 2021

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Cole Smithey

ColeSmithey.com

This overlooked drama by Nic Cage packs an emotional wallop.

Rated: 4/5

Feb 20, 2006

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Landon J

I enjoyed this despite it's goofy characteristics at times. Some overacting and nonsensical character actions (for better realism or worse). A great little character piece with a not so happy ending. A fantastic Nic Cage cameo worth watching for alone.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

11/29/24

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Audience Member

One of my favorite Nicholas Cage performances.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/29/23

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Audience Member

Great acting by Franco!

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/07/23

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Audience Member

The movie lost me the moment Nicolas Cage (the film's director) shows up....being Nicolas Cage.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/02/23

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Audience Member

Well this was incredibly disappointing. It seems like it should have had quite a bit going for it: Nic Cage directing, James Franco starring and New Orleans as the setting. But really, it seems that Nic Cage can't direct, Franco gives a pretty restrained performance in this and New Orleans is barely shown at all in the movie, and when it is, it doesn't do much to add to the atmosphere. The story is lame, I didn't care about any of the characters, and it just felt all-around vacant, like there was nothing here that really wanted you to get invested in the movie. The only reason I'm rating it so high is for Nic Cage's cameo, and that's only a few minutes long out of this almost 2 hour long movie (it really didn't need to be that long, that was another problem). Anyway, Nic Cage plays this rich coke-fueled pimp dressed in a hideous yellow suit, and for the couple minutes he's on screen, that's the high point of the movie. And even that was one of his more forgettable characters. So yeah, I can't really recommend this to anyone. Not to Cage fans, not to Franco fans, not to fans of seeing New Orleans in cinema...it's just an overall dud.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

01/18/23

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Frances H

Good acting by James Franco, but sordid and depressing story. Even Brenda Blethyn wasn't good in this one, and she usually rises above her material. At least the ending wasn't terrible, but Nick Cage's direction was. He should have remembered his own roles better.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

05/28/13

Full Review

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Nicolas Cage

Director

James Franco

Sonny

Brenda Blethyn

Jewel

Mena Suvari

Carol

Harry Dean Stanton

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Scott Caan

Jesse

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Synopsis

After a stint in the army, former male prostitute Sonny Phillips (James Franco) returns to his home in a run-down New Orleans in search of a stable life. However, the financial difficulties faced by his mother, Jewel (Brenda Blethyn), who is also a prostitute, make escaping his former life difficult. With few job prospects, Sonny reluctantly begins working the streets. The only bright spot in his otherwise difficult life is his relationship with Carol (Mena Suvari), Jewel's new protégé.

Director: Nicolas Cage
Producer: Nicolas Cage, Paul Brooks, Norman Golightly
Screenwriter: John Carlen
Distributor: IDP Distribution
Production Co: Saturn Films, Gold Circle Films
Rating: R (Violence|Language|Strong Sexuality|Some Drug Use)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 27, 2002, Original
Release Date (DVD): Aug 19, 2003
Box Office (Gross USA): $17.6K
Runtime: 1h 50m
Sound Mix: Surround

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