Movie review: Sugar

Sugar is an interesting movie, particularly in that it covers the great American pastime from a non-American perspective. It’s that of a Dominican prospect, Miguel (Algenis Perez Soto), whom everyone but his mother calls ‘Sugar’. Signed for a handful of beans by a major-league team - well, $15,000 - he makes his way to the States, but finds that talent alone is not enough to make his way to the big time.

↵While not entirely successful (the film goes off-track badly in the final third), you do get a tremendous sense of the isolation felt by such players. Dispatched to the minors in Iowa, Sugar is boarded out with a local family who, while kind, barely speak a word of Spanish. He’s a stranger in a strange land, and when he has to face a slump, like all players do, he has no support network to keep him balanced. The end result is about as far from your typical sports movie as can be imagined, and is certainly worth a look - it’s been playing on HBO this month, and is also available on DVD.

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