''Sylvie's Love'' is a 2020 American

romantic drama Romance films involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion (emotion), passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their ...

film, written, directed and produced by

Eugene Ashe Eugene Johnson Ashe is an Emmy nominated writer-director and former Sony Music recording artist from New York City. His award winning Amazon Original film Sylvie's Love, premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival in the US Dramatic Competition an ...

. The film stars

Tessa Thompson Tessa Lynne Thompson (born October 3, 1983) is an American actress. She began her professional acting career with the List of Theatre Communications Group member theatres, Los Angeles Women's Shakespeare Company while studying at Santa Monica ...

Nnamdi Asomugha Nnamdi Asomugha ( ; born July 6, 1981) is an American actor, director, producer, and former professional football cornerback who played 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Oakland Raiders, Philadelphia Eagles, and San Fran ...

Ryan Michelle Bathe Ryan Michelle Bathé is an American actress. She starred in the ABC legal drama series ''Boston Legal'' (2005–06), BET+ comedy-drama series '' First Wives Club'' (2019–22), and NBC crime thriller '' The Endgame'' (2022). Early life Bathe's ...

Regé-Jean Page Regé-Jean Page () is a British actor known for his role in the first series of Netflix's period drama ''Bridgerton'' in 2020. He has also appeared in the series '' Waterloo Road'' (2015) on BBC One, ''Roots'' (2016) on History, and '' For the ...

Aja Naomi King Aja Naomi King (; born January 11, 1985) is an American actress. King began her career in guest-starring roles on television, and starred in the short-lived CW medical comedy-drama series '' Emily Owens, M.D.'' (2012–2013). She also has starr ...

, and

Eva Longoria Eva Jacqueline Longoria Bastón ( Longoria; born March 15, 1975) is an American actress, producer, director, and businesswoman. After several guest roles on television, she became recognized for her portrayal of Isabella Braña on the CBS day ...

. ''Sylvie's Love'' had its world premiere at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

on January 27, 2020, and was released on December 23, 2020, by

Amazon Studios Amazon MGM Studios is an American film and television production and distribution company owned by Amazon, and headquartered at the Culver Studios complex in Culver City, California. Launched on November 16, 2010, it took its current name on O ...

Plot

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, 1962, Sylvie is waiting outside

Town Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

, while Robert is in a recording studio playing the

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to p ...

. Moments later, Sylvie recognizes Robert on the sidewalk outside a theater. Five years earlier, Sylvie's father hires Robert to work at his record store in Harlem. Robert is the saxophonist for The Dickie Brewster Quartet, an up-and-coming jazz band from

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

. Sylvie and Robert bond over their shared love for music; Robert eventually invites Sylvie and her cousin Mona to a gig. Mona has a fling with Robert's bandmate Chico while Sylvie, despite her engagement to a wealthy man named Lacy who is fighting in the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

, eventually starts a passionate affair with Robert. Some time later, the Dickie Brewster Quartet's manager, a woman who calls herself the Countess, books them a job in Paris. Robert asks Sylvie to come with him. Sylvie refuses but bids him goodbye before his departure, hiding the fact the she is pregnant with his child from him as not to derail his career. Back in 1962, Sylvie invites Robert to watch the concert with her. She learns that the band is doing well and is back in New York City to record an album. That night, Sylvie and Robert sleep together before she returns home to Lacy, now a successful businessman, and her daughter Michelle. Sylvie gets a job as a

production assistant A production assistant, also known as a PA, is a member of the film crew and is a job title used in filmmaking and television for a person responsible for various aspects of a production. The job of a PA can vary greatly depending on the budget ...

on a major cooking show produced by a black woman, Kate Spencer, a job Sylvie enjoys despite Lacy's concerns that it will interfere with her duties as a wife. Robert sends Sylvie a ticket to his show, but she sees him in the parking lot with another woman afterwards and leaves. Sylvie and Robert attend separate

New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve refers to the evening, or commonly the entire day, of the last day of the year, 31 December, also known as Old Year's Day. In many countries, New Year's Eve is celebrated with dancing, eating, drinkin ...

parties. Kate informs Sylvie that she is quitting to get married and is promoting Sylvie to take her place. Tensions spring up around the band; Sid, the record company executive who monitors the band, offers Robert a chance to record his own material. That night, Sylvie's father has a heart attack and passes away; while in the hospital he calls Robert and tells him that Michelle is his daughter. During the funeral, Sylvie and Lacy agree to split up. Robert approaches Sylvie about Michelle's paternity; eventually, she lets him meet Michelle, and Robert moves into her house. Some time later, Robert approaches Sid about his offer, but Sid turns him down as he believes jazz is dying. Sylvie assures him that she can provide for them while Robert sorts things out. Robert tells Sylvie that he is thinking of contacting an old friend who had offered to put him in touch with

Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

musicians, but if the job is successful, they will have to move to Detroit. The job offer turns out to be a fluke; upon returning to New York, Robert realizes that Sylvie loves her career too much for them to move. He tells Sylvie he got the job, but that he will move to Detroit alone. Sylvie tells him to leave. Robert returns to Detroit and gets a job at an auto plant. The week of the

March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom (commonly known as the March on Washington or the Great March on Washington) was held in Washington, D.C., on August 28, 1963. The purpose of the march was to advocate for the civil and economic righ ...

, Sylvie comes to D.C. to visit Mona, and runs into Dickie's wife Carmen at the hotel. Carmen informs her that Robert is working at a plant. Mona muses that Robert did not tell her about the auto plant job for the same reason Sylvie did not tell him about the pregnancy: they did not want to destroy the other person's career. Sylvie travels to Detroit and meets Robert at the plant. She tells him she can't be happy without him in her life; the two reconcile. The end credits intersperse scenes of Robert, Sylvie, and Michelle at the beach with scenes showing that Robert inherited Sylvie's father's saxophone and eventually started performing again, while Sylvie continued to work in production.

Cast

as Sylvie Parker (née Johnson) *

as Robert Halloway *

as Mona *

as Kate Spencer *

as Chico Sweetney *

as Carmen *

John Magaro John Robert Magaro (born February 16, 1983) is an American actor. He has acted in the films '' Not Fade Away'' (2012), '' The Big Short'' (2015), '' Carol'' (2015), ''Overlord'' (2018), '' First Cow'' (2019), '' Showing Up'' (2022), ''The Mistre ...

as Sid Schuur *

Ed Weeks Edward Charles Egerton Weeks (born 25 October 1980) is an English actor. He is best known for starring as Dr. Jeremy Reed in the Fox/Hulu comedy series '' The Mindy Project'' (2012–2017). He also starred as Colin in the Fox comedy series '' ...

as Chase Nickerson *

Lance Reddick Lance Solomon Reddick (June 7, 1962 – March 17, 2023) was an American actor. He portrayed Cedric Daniels in ''The Wire'' (2002–2008), List of Fringe characters#Phillip Broyles, Phillip Broyles in ''Fringe (TV series), Fringe'' (2008–201 ...

as Herbert "Mr. Jay" Johnson *

Jemima Kirke Jemima Jo Kirke (born 26 April 1985) is a British-American artist, actress and director. She gained international acclaim through her role as Jessa Johansson in the 2012 HBO series '' Girls''. She made her film debut in the 2005 indie short '' ...

as The Countess *

MC Lyte Lana Michele Moorer (born October 11, 1970), better known by her stage name MC Lyte, is an American rapper. Considered one of the pioneers of female rap, MC Lyte first gained fame in the late 1980s, becoming the first female rapper to release a ...

as Mikki *

Alano Miller Alano Herberto Miller (born 1980) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Cato on the short-lived WGN America drama series '' Underground''. Early life and education Miller was born and raised in Orlando, Florida, U.S. He is of ...

as Lacy Parker *

Erica Gimpel Erica Fawn Gimpel (born June 25, 1964) is an American actress, singer, dancer, and composer. She is best known for her roles on television shows '' Fame'' as Coco Hernandez and on '' Profiler'' as Angel Brown. She is also known for her recurrin ...

as Eunice Johnson *

Tone Bell Michael Anthony Bell II, known professionally as Tone Bell, is an American stand-up comedian and actor. Early life Bell was born in Decatur, Georgia. He attended Savannah State University where he studied communications with a concentration in ...

as Dickie Brewster *

Wendi McLendon-Covey Wendi McLendon-Covey (née McLendon; born October 10, 1969) is an American actress known primarily for her work in comedic and improvisational roles. From 2013 until 2023, she played the role of family matriarch Beverly Goldberg on the ABC come ...

as Lucy Wolper *

Ron Funches Ronald Kyle Funches (born March 12, 1983) is an American comedian and actor. Born in California, Funches spent his early life in Chicago before relocating to Salem, Oregon, as a teenager. He began his comedy career in Portland, Oregon, at age 23. ...

as Tank * Raquel Horsford as Connie * Kareem Stroud as Ed Beasley * Christian Lagadec as Antoine Fournier

Production

In February 2014, it was announced

Larenz Tate Larenz Tate (born September 8, 1975) is an American film and television actor. He is best known for his roles as O-Dog in ''Menace II Society'', Anthony Curtis in ''Dead Presidents'', and as Councilman Rashad Tate in '' Power''. Tate's other fi ...

would star in and produce the film ''Sylvie’s Love'', with Eugene Ashe directing from a screenplay he wrote. In February 2019, it was announced

and

had joined the cast of the film, with Asomugha, Jonathan Baker, Gabrielle Glore, and Matthew Thurm producing the film, while Thompson will serve as an executive producer along with Matthew Rachamkin. In March 2019,

, Regé-Jean Page,

and

joined the cast of the film. In April 2019,

joined the cast of the film. In October 2020,

joined the cast of the film.

Filming

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...

began in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

on February 25, 2019.

Release

It had its world premiere at the

on January 27, 2020. Shortly after,

acquired distribution rights to the film. It was released on December 23, 2020, after previously scheduled for December 25, 2020.

Reception

Review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews and ratings of products and services, such as films, books, video games, music, software, hardware, or cars. This system then stores the reviews to be used for supporting a website where user ...

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

gives the film approval rating based on reviews, with an average rating of . The website's critic consensus reads: "A romance for the ages, ''Sylvie's Love'' wraps audiences in the sweet embrace of its old-fashioned romance and celebration of Black love."

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

reports a score of 74 out of 100 based on 25 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 9827834 2020 films 2020 romantic drama films 2020 independent films Amazon MGM Studios films American romantic drama films Films shot in Los Angeles Amazon Prime Video original films 2020s English-language films 2020s American films English-language romantic drama films English-language independent films