Bell & belle want to break out of their trailer park lives & get up & out to the big city of atlanta. Just when they think they are on their way to getting a nest egg bell falls for a handsome police officer na... more »med rhett butler. Studio: Arts Alliance America Release Date: 02/26/2008 Starring: Anna Faris Justin Chambers Run time: 90 minutes Rating: R« less
Jennifer D. (jennicat) from ST AUGUSTINE, FL Reviewed on 11/12/2014...
Well made for a sundance film.
Movie Reviews
Great movie
Shawna | seattle, WA | 04/21/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Definitely a buy. I first thought it would be a campy movie that would be a good way to kill two hours with. Wrong... watched it twice in one evening and can't wait to see it with my friend later today.
This movie has so many different nuances and contrasts in it that just watching it the second time makes it worth while. For example, there's a bar fight scene where Belle is sitting leisurely at the bar sipping her beer and scheming while behind her two characters are literally doing a fast paced fist dance scene. Fists up, move twice back then twice forward while partner does the same. They each have a buddy who decides to react differently to the situation. What you think is going to happen in this movie... rarely does.
The more I think about it, the more I appreciate it. I rarely encounter a movie that makes me want to view the script and see where the director added to it but this one does.
The characters are awesome. Justin Chambers is the only one whose work I've seen before. He plays such a different character in this movie as compared to his role as Alex in 'Grey's Anatomy" that it's hard to believe it's even him. His acting is that good. He is a strong, down to earth (literally), character that makes you feel for him. In fact, it would be impossible to not identify with a lot of the characters in the movie.
Sound... whoever did the music in this one knew what they were doing. They knew when to put in the sappy music and when to scratch the album, thereby emphasizing what was going on in that scene and added the voice of the characters instead of usurping it.
Very interesting movie that I highly recommend. I'd love to say more but..."
Southern Belles
Shane Cross | 03/21/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Wow. Pleasant surprise is an understatement. I sat down to watch this movie with some friends thinking it would be another B rated made for TV movie, but boy was I wrong. This movie is incredibily entertaining and full of subtle wit. Think a cross between Raising Cain and the Big Lebowski. I found myself disappointed that it ended when it did, as after a few Reebs I was craving more Southern Belles dialogue.
Keep this movie team together, pump out more films, ladies and fellas. This is what the movie industry needs today.
I highly recommend this movie as a return to entertaining with the mind and portrayals of life, rather than mindless special effects. Buy one for your home, one for your office, and one for the glovebox of your IROC.
"
Charmed by these Southern Belles.
G. Merritt | Boulder, CO | 03/27/2008
(4 out of 5 stars)
"There are at least two good reasons to see the 2005 romantic comedy Southern Belles: Laura Breckenridge (in her film debut) and Anna Faris (Smiley Face; Lost in Translation; Scary Movie). The film (currently in rotation on the Sundance channel) tells the story of two best friends, Belle (Faris) and Bell (Breckenridge), who dream of trading their dreary trailer-park lives in rural Georgia for life in the big city (Atlanta). Not only are they as sweet-natured as a couple of Georgia peaches, but together Bell & Belle define the phrase "too cute." Their dream goes awry when Bell meets a handsome law enforcement officer named Rhett Butler (Justin Chambers of Grey's Anatomy), who takes her turkey hunting on their first date. Belle cautions her friend that men in uniforms are "dead ends." Anna Faris (who won the "Stonette of the Year" Award at High Times Magazine's Stony Awards in 2007 for her performance in Smiley Face) carries the film with her wide-eyed comic timing and naive facial expressions. She is perfect for the role of far-from-sophisticated and possibly gay Belle (Bell catches her checking out other women). In my favorite scene in the film, Belle takes offense at a Frenchwoman shopping for "pussy food" (cat food) at the Whitey's discount department store where Belle works. Well-crafted on a small budget, rich in local color and colorful kooks, and full of funny moments, Southern Belles is a charming film that deserves a cult following. Anna Faris is on the verge of becoming Hollywood's next comic "It Girl," of this I'm certain.
G. Merritt"
A Heapin' Helpin' of Southern Pride, Y'all
David Irvine | 03/21/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Despite the "Gone with the Wind" references that crop up periodically throughout "Southern Belles," it is clear from the inception that this is a portrait of the American south altogether different from that depicted in the 1939 Civil War epic.
Think gritty trailer parks instead of sweeping plantations; denim and wife beaters rather than pressed suits and flowing gowns. (Then again, the confederate flag is presented prominently in both pictures; some things never change, after all.) Our heroine Bell is no Scarlett O'Hara and Rhett Butler is a far cry from, well, Rhett Butler.
But that's the beauty of it. Just ask anyone who's ever spent any time in a small town south of the Mason-Dixon line and they'll tell you that "Southern Belles" gets it right: from the "hill-hop" culture to the overzealous law enforcement; from the casseroles to the cars to the constellations. (Sure, the turkey hunting scene may have been less than plausible, but what movie has ever depticted hunting with any degree of accuracy?)
And in the same way that Jerry Seinfeld (or, perhaps more appropriately in the presetnt context, Jeff Foxworthy) is funny because his observations are true, so it is with "Southern Belles." Kevin is a kid we all knew in grade school, with extra blankness in his stare for added effect. And that kid probably grew up to become Hampton, complete with the ever-present cigarettes and misplaced pride in a piece-of-crap car.
The main characters, while far from flawless, keep the over-the-top supporting cast from careening out of control. But they do more than that. Even if Belle and Bell are not perfect dramatic foils, by the end of the picture they at least serve to highlight the differing - yet equally legitimate - perspectives on the world from which they hail. It is a world not meant for everyone, but that nonetheless has something quite valuable to offer.
Rhett and Scarlett may not have been proud, but they would have at least laughed a lot."
Great condition
Debra Allen | White House, TN | 03/26/2010
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Received quickly. In perfect condition even though it was supposed to be a used previously rented movie. Think it was actually new. Not one scratch on it!"