Melanie's lawyer interrupts the wedding ceremony, bringing the divorce papers that Melanie herself has missed signing. Once Melanie's friends from New York arrive, they browse at a glazier whose wares they all have admired in New York, only to realize it is Jake.
Andrew soon appears at Melanie's parents' house, having gotten over the shock and admitting he still wants to marry her, here in Alabama. When her father introduces himself as Earl Smooter, Andrew realizes that Melanie has lied to him about who she really is and leaves. When Andrew sees Melanie at the battlefield, she tells him Jake is her ex-husband. On the way, knowing who Andrew is, Jake regales him with the story of "Felony" Melanie Smooter, a young girl who once tied dynamite to a cat's tail and then was arrested after it ran into the bank. Jake takes him to a Civil War reenactment, where Melanie is with her father. Melanie now realizes why Jake never signed the divorce papers.Īndrew arrives at the Carmichael Plantation to surprise Melanie. Melanie soon reconciles with her other friends, and learns that Jake followed her to New York City to win her back-intimidated by the size of Manhattan, he returned home determined to make something of himself first. Realizing her predicament, Bobby Ray pretends to be her cousin, backing up her pretense that this is her childhood home. Melanie visits the Carmichael plantation to apologize to Bobby Ray, where she is cornered by a private detective sent to dig up dirt for the mayor. When Melanie wakes up the next morning, the divorce papers are lying on her bed, finally signed by Jake. Following Jake to a local bar, Melanie gets drunk and embarrasses herself in front of her childhood friends, expressing disgust at their lifestyle, confessing that Jake got her pregnant as teens and outing a mutual friend, Bobby Ray Carmichael. Jake says he will sign the papers in the morning, lamenting "nobody finds their soulmate when they're ten years old". Hoping to spur Jake to sign the papers, Melanie empties out his checking account, after learning that her name is still on it. When Melanie's father brings her home from the station she announces her engagement. In Alabama, Melanie asks Jake why he has returned the divorce papers unsigned for the last seven years, but he orders her out of his house, eventually calling the sheriff (another childhood friend) to intervene. Andrew's mother, the Mayor of New York, expresses doubt that Melanie is good enough for her son, whom she is grooming to eventually run for President of the United States. In reality she is going to procure a divorce from her estranged husband Jake. After becoming engaged to Andrew, Melanie goes home alone to Alabama to tell her parents.
She is a successful up-and-coming fashion designer in New York City. In the present day, Melanie has changed her last name to Carmichael, a rich local family, to hide her poor Southern roots. They discuss their future together, with Jake asserting they will be married one day.
Jake has brought Melanie out to show her the glass sculptures that result when sand is struck by lightning. With so many rom-coms set in cities – whether it’s New York, London, Paris, or Rome (there’s a song in there somewhere) – it’s refreshing to transport the drama to a country setting.Ĭountry is literal in this instance, as the film delivers country music, southern food, and slightly backwards, redneck attitudes.The film opens on a stormy Alabama beach with two children, Melanie Smooter and Jake Perry. It’s something she’s honed over the years and she knows when to rein it in to give the more emotional moments the tenderness and weight they deserve. She’s as charming as she is impatient, a country girl trying hard to fit the city slicker mould she’s carved out for herself. There’s no denying that Reese Witherspoon is what makes Sweet Home Alabama work.įollowing hot on the heels of Legally Blonde, Witherspoon slipped effortlessly into the shoes of the redneck forced to confront her past in order to move on with her future. (Picture: Touchstone/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock)