Main Cast: Marley Shelton, James Marsden, Mena Suvari, Marla Sokoloff, Rachel Blanchard
Release Year: 2001
Country: US
Run Time: 81 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG13
Plot
The directorial debut of Australian filmmaker Francine McDougall, this teen comedy stars Marley Shelton as Diane, captain of the Lincoln High School A-squad cheerleaders, the most popular girls in their school. They include born-again Christian Hannah (Rachel Blanchard), the rebellious Kansas (Mena Suvari), late-night talk show fan Cleo (Melissa George), and brainy geek Lucy (Sarah Marsh). When Diane learns that she's pregnant, she and her stud quarterback boyfriend Jack (James Marsden) get hitched and quickly learn that marriage with children is an expensive proposition. With some advice from Kansas' convict mom (Sean Young), the squad embarks on a plan to rob a bank, but their peppy enthusiasm and patented cheerleading moves may give them away to the authorities. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
Review
The last thing the movie world needs is another teenage comedy about conniving cheerleaders, but to be fair, this cheerfully vulgar entry in the teen sweepstakes hits the mark more often than not. Like most recent movies of its ilk, it owes nearly everything to Amy Heckerling's buoyant 1995 feature Clueless, right down to its specific female vernacular. Unlike that charming romantic confection, however, this film plays a bit darker. Sugar & Spice usually scores when it focuses on being a vicious satire of teen woes, and is less adept at creating a story and characters viewers should actually care much about. The spirited performers who populate the cast, however -- including Melissa George, Marla Sokoloff, and American Beauty ingénue Mena Suvari -- keep the proceedings engaging. Once intended as a unflinching black comedy (and originally called Sugar & Spice & Semiautomatics), the material was cleaned up by the filmmakers after the tragic Columbine shooting in Colorado in 1999. The result is wildly uneven and sometimes incoherent, but when the movie has its head on straight, the zingers fall right into place. ~ Jason Clark, All Movie Guide
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Sugar & Spice is a 2001teen comedy/heist film directed by Francine McDougall. It was filmed entirely in the Minnesota cities of Anoka, Apple Valley, Eagan, and St Paul.
Diane Weston (Marley Shelton) is a popular high schoolcheerleader whose life revolves around her boyfriend Jack (James Marsden) and cheerleading, as she is the captain of her school's "A-Squad". However, when Diane becomes pregnant by Jack, her life falls apart as her parents disown her. She moves in with Jack, and the two quickly get jobs, but Diane quickly realizes that Jack lacks the financial skills to provide for her and their child. Diane confides to her fellow cheerleaders about her problems and the group come up with a way for Diane to make the money she needs: robbing banks.
Diane and her friends don matching spandex bodysuits, fake pregnant bellies (to offset Diane's real pregnancy), and identical blonde latex masks and rob a grocery store bank. Dubbed "The Betty Gang" by the media, the group successfully carry out the heist, but not before rival B-Squad cheerleader Lisa Janusch (Marla Sokoloff) discovers what Diane and her friends are up to. Lisa goes to the police with the information, and Diane confronts Lisa off-camera before the group is arrested and makes a deal with her: in exchange for Lisa providing the group an alibi and recanting all prior statements to the police, Diane will resign from the A-Squad and personally name Lisa her successor as A-Squad leader.
During the film's epilogue, it is revealed that Diane ultimately tells Jack that her share of the stolen money was won via the lottery. Jack believes Diane and the two marry. Jack goes on to become a senator, and Diane reconciles with her family, who set up a scholarship for pregnant teenagers. The final shot is Diane and Jack's family portrait, showing twin sons, a third son, and a baby girl.
