Bitter Sugar

1996 | Drama, Romance, Foreign Language

Synopsis

Gustavo is a young Havana Communist who believes in the revolution; he hopes for a scholarship to study aeronautical engineering in Prague. But his faith in the new Cuba is tested: his father, a psychiatrist, can make four times as much playing piano at a hotel for foreigners; his sweetheart, Yolanda, wants a career as a dancer and longs for the riches of Miami; his younger brother Bobby simply wants to play rock music, and as a result is in constant trouble with the authorities. When Bobby takes a shocking step of revolt and Gustavo is refused service at a foreigners-only bar, the contradictions in his resolve to become a "new man" push him to the breaking point.

Scores

Overall Score
25.2
Popularity Percentile (Year)
6.4%
Box Office Percentile (Year)
23.0%
Review Aggregate
71.2

Critic Consensus

100.0% Fresh • 1 critic reviews

Critic reception is largely positive, with 100% of 1 logged reviews marked Fresh. Across reviews, critics repeatedly emphasize character-driven, romantic, emotional. Most critics frame the film as an effective delivery of its core style and intent.

character-drivenromanticemotionalvisually strikingthought-provokingrealistic

Cast

CastYearReported SalaryInflation AdjustedNotes
Rene Lavan1996$6,000$13,000(est)
Mayte Vilán1996$4,000$8,000(est)
Miguel Gutiérrez1996$3,000$6,000(est)
Larry Villanueva1996$2,000$5,000(est)

Aggregated Reviews

Rotten Tomatoes critic scoreN/A
RT critic review count3
Rotten Tomatoes audience score72.0
RT audience rating count500
IMDb rating7.0
IMDb votes652

Box Office ?

CategoryYearReportedInflation Adjusted
Domestic1996$450,060$899,833
International1996N/AN/A
Worldwide1996$450,060$899,833

Earnings / Profitability

Estimated net revenues and net expenses for films based on reported and estimated numbers. This income statement should be considered most viable for the first 24 months after the inital movie's release (ie after most lucrative pay windows).
CategoryYearReportedInflation Adjusted
Revenues
Theatrical Net Revenue1996$225,030$449,917
Digital Rentals ?1996N/AN/A
Digital Purchases ?1996N/AN/A
Physical Rentals ?1996$4,934,000$9,864,855
Physical Purchases ?1996$5,846,000$11,688,273
TV & Streaming Revenue1996$189,025$377,930
Total Revenues1996$11,194,055$22,380,975
Expenses
Budget ?1996$495,000 (est)$989,684 (est)
Print & Advertising (P&A) ?1996$360,000 (est)$719,771 (est)
Participations1996$448,000$895,714
Residuals ?1996$798,000$1,595,491
Interest & Overhead1996$99,000$197,937
Total Expenses1996$2,200,000$4,398,598
Movie Net Profit or Loss1996$8,994,055$17,982,377

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