Sweet Home Alabama (film) - Plot

Plot

The film opens on an Alabama beach with two children, Melanie Smooter and Jake Perry, chasing each other. The two discuss their future together. They kiss, and Jake says they will be married one day. The scene then moves to the present day. Melanie (Reese Witherspoon) has changed her last name to Carmichael to hide her Southern roots. She now is a successful fashion designer in New York City. After becoming engaged to the mayor's son, Andrew (Patrick Dempsey), Melanie announces that she has to go back home alone to Alabama to tell her parents. She has not told Andrew that she is still married to Jake (Josh Lucas).

Upon arrival in Alabama, Melanie demands a divorce and an explanation as to why, for the last seven years, Jake has returned the divorce papers unsigned. Jake, once again, refuses to sign the papers, first demanding that Melanie visit her parents to say hello. Melanie retaliates by emptying out their joint checking account. After following Jake to a local bar, Melanie gets drunk and embarrasses herself in front of her friends, confessing that she had previously been pregnant with Jake's baby, which ended in a miscarriage. She also reveals that a mutual friend, Bobby Ray, is gay. Jake becomes angry with her and takes her home. When Melanie wakes up the next morning, the divorce papers are lying on her bed and finally signed by Jake.

Soon after, Melanie visits the Carmichael Plantation and tries to apologize to Bobby Ray. Though Bobby Ray accepts the apology, he explicitly tells Melanie that Jake is not the only person she left behind. He expresses the sadness that all her friends have felt after she fled to New York City years ago. Just as Melanie is leaving the plantation, she finds herself cornered by a pushy reporter who claims to be from the New York Post (though in reality, he is the assistant of Andrew's mother) and asks for a tour of the beautiful plantation where Melanie supposedly grew up. Desperately, Melanie tries to sneak back into the mansion. Bobby Ray realizes what is happening, so he pretends to be Melanie's cousin and saves her from embarrassment by giving the reporter a tour of the plantation. That afternoon, Melanie realizes that her friends are kind, caring individuals who never stopped loving her.

Melanie learns from a friend that Jake had once gone to New York City to try and find her because he was still in love. That night, Melanie goes to the cemetery to tell her old dog good-bye. Jake shows up, and they talk about why their marriage did not work which is hinted to be due to the combination of Jake's irresponsibility and her miscarriage. Jake wishes Melanie a good life with Andrew, but Melanie says she cannot do it and kisses him. However, Jake pushes her away and tells her to go home.

Andrew arrives in town, looking for Melanie at the Carmichael Plantation, her "supposed" home. Jake meets him and takes him to the field of a Civil War reenactment, where Melanie is with her father. Jake tells Andrew about his ex-wife, Melanie Smooter. When Andrew sees Melanie at the battlefield, her father introduces himself to Andrew as Earl Smooter. Realizing Jake's ex-wife is the same woman he proposed to, Andrew rebuffs Melanie and leaves.

Melanie returns to her parents' house, where her father walks in with Andrew. Andrew tells her that he does not care about the past and still wants to marry her. They decide to have the wedding in Alabama, and Andrew's mother comes down from New York. Once Melanie's friends from New York arrive, they discover that Jake has become a very successful glassblower with his own company. Melanie is surprised to see what Jake has made out of himself, and it is suddenly clear that he did it all to win her back.

On her wedding day, as she is walking down the aisle, her lawyer interrupts the ceremony and explains that the divorce is still not final because Melanie forgot to sign the divorce papers. Melanie explains to Andrew that she cannot marry him because she still loves Jake and hopes Andrew will find a good woman. Andrew graciously accepts this and wishes her well with Jake. However, Andrew's mother explodes, attacking Andrew for sullying his image for a promising political career, then verbally attacking Melanie and the town. When she insults Melanie's mother, Melanie punches her.

Melanie finds Jake on the same beach, as it was in the film's opening. Melanie tells him that the two are still married, and she wants to be with him. As Jake and Melanie kiss, the town sheriff, Wade, interrupts them explaining that Melanie is wanted because she ran out on a perfectly good cake. Wade takes the pair back to the bar owned by Jake's mother, where all of their friends and family are waiting. Throughout the end credits then into a post-credits scene, it is shown that Melanie got pregnant again, only this time she successfully carried the baby to term, and the couple is living happily with a daughter.