I was tired.
Tired of reading reviews of black movies that not only didn’t resonate with me, but seemed to come from an uninformed and condescending place.
Tired of reading takes on hilarious racial humor that suggested the jokes were completely lost on a clueless reviewer.
Tired of reading reviews of black movies from reviewer’s that clearly didn’t get or value the sensibility of the movie or its creators.
Tired of not having access to what black reviewer’s thought of the kinds of movies that I’m culturally drawn to.
A few years ago I went to see Meet the Blacks with my family. I didn’t read any reviews before seeing the film and laughed so hard throughout the movie that by the time the credits rolled I felt like I’d just completed a full ab workout at the gym. When I got home I decided to see what others were saying about this flawed but totally enjoyable piece of art.
They trashed it.
All of them.
In IMDB it was the lowest rated film on the entire site. None of the reviewers saw the same movie I saw. None of them were black. From views on politics to views on police brutality to views on race relations, black people see things very differently than does the establishment. So, too, with films and art.
Like I said, I was tired. So, after years of shaking my fist at the sun, I finally decided to build an awning…with theatre seating, for my peeps. Enjoy.
How am I defining a “black movie?”
- a black lead?
- a predominantly black cast?
- principally black creative leadership?
- a story that engages the black experience? in America?
- actually it’s all of these, and perhaps more!
- of course there will be a movie or two that defies categorization and will have to be considered as black because of its impact on black people even if it falls short in one or more of these categories.