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Sweet and Lowdown (1999)

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All Critics
Top Critics

Average Rating: 6.8/10
Reviews Counted: 59
Fresh: 46 | Rotten: 13

Critics praise Woody Allen's Sweet and Lowdown for its charming, light-hearted comedy and quality acting.

Average Rating: 6.5/10
Critic Reviews: 16
Fresh: 11 | Rotten: 5

Critics praise Woody Allen's Sweet and Lowdown for its charming, light-hearted comedy and quality acting.

audience

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Average Rating: 3.6/5
User Ratings: 12,847

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Movie Info

Woody Allen immerses himself in the world of vintage jazz in this period mock-biography of a musician gifted in his art but a sad student in life. Emmet Ray (Sean Penn) is a 1930s jazz guitarist considered one of the finest musicians ever to touch a fretboard, second only to the legendary Django Reinhardt. For all the passion and sensitivity of his music, Emmet is a louse off-stage; he earned his living as a pimp before gaining fame, and he throws his money away on flashy clothes and big cars,

PG-13, 1 hr. 35 min.

Drama, Musical & Performing Arts, Art House & International, Comedy

Directed By: Woody Allen

Written By: Woody Allen

In Theaters: Dec 3, 1999 Limited

On DVD: Jun 20, 2000

Sony Pictures Classics

Sweet and Lowdown Trailer & Photos

Cast

Sean Penn
Emmet Ray
Samantha Morton
Hattie
Uma Thurman
Blanche
Brian Markinson
Bill Shields
Anthony LaPaglia
Al Torrio
Gretchen Mol
Ellie
Vincent Guastaferro
Sid Bishop
John Waters
Mr. Haynes
Constance Schulman
Hazel
Kellie Overbey
Iris
James Urbaniak
Harry
Mark Damon Johnson
Omer
Darryl Alan Reed
Don
Rick Monday
Chester Weems
Brad Garrett
Joe Bedloe
Woody Allen
himself
Douglas McGrath
Himself

Critic Reviews for Sweet and Lowdown

All Critics (81) | Top Critics (22) | Fresh (47) | Rotten (13) | DVD (12)

Droll and amusing.

August 15, 2002 Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times

| Comment

Kenneth Turan

Los Angeles Times

Top Critic

A shallow portrait of the artist as a cad.

March 22, 2002 Full Review Source: Globe and Mail

| Comment

Liam Lacey

Globe and Mail

Top Critic

The jazz is certainly here, but the passion is missing.

January 1, 2000 Comment

Mike Clark

USA Today

Top Critic

Woody Allen, in his thirtieth outing as writer-director, still shows signs of change, improvement, depth of feeling.

September 23, 2007 Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com

| Comment

Rob Gonsalves

eFilmCritic.com

Thanks to Morton's presence, it gets closer to the sweetness of the wonderful Everyone Says I Love You.

May 26, 2006 Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid

| Comment

Jeffrey M. Anderson

Combustible Celluloid

Focusing on the story, the auteur explores his two favorite topics, jazz and s----heels, to enter the new millenium in style.

December 6, 2005 Full Review Source: Film Threat

| Comment

Ron Wells

Film Threat

... seems to be the latest chapter in a great work on the artist's search for meaning, for self-worth, for redemption.

December 6, 2004 Full Review Source: Looking Closer

| Comment

Jeffrey Overstreet

Looking Closer

If you aren't sure you like jazz, see this movie just to be exposed to the Django sound! Your next trip might be to the record store.

November 21, 2003 Full Review Source: Cinema Signals

| Comment

Jules Brenner

Cinema Signals

Combining the worst traits of his two most recent outings--the overweening cruelty of Deconstructing Harry and the formal and narrative laziness of Celebrity.

March 19, 2003 Full Review Source: Nick's Flick Picks

| Comment

Nick Davis

Nick's Flick Picks

A pleasant film. It's sweet and low down on my list of Allen favorites, but worth seeing for Penn's performance.

October 21, 2002 Full Review Source: San Diego Metropolitan

| Comment

Jean Lowerison

San Diego Metropolitan

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Audience Reviews for Sweet and Lowdown

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For some art is therapy. Allen posits that the reverse also holds water, only not quite with this effort. Sean Penn is Allen's willing doppelganger here (not adopting Allen's much copied persona unlike most), a man afraid to connect emotionally to anyone. Can anyone get through his Maginot Line of defenses to get to

September 26, 2011

moon rivers

Super Reviewer

Quite delightful. Samantha Morton seriously doesn't need a voice. She has a face!I'm a little iffy about the mockumentary aspect of this movie. For much of it, I thought Emmet Ray was a real person. Then when I learned he wasn't, I wondered why Woody tried to make the biography seem so real. He doesn't eschew

June 5, 2011

Alice Shen

Super Reviewer

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