This blog is a visual articulation of MY views of the world around me. I will present various sides of arguments, and always sum them up with my own personal take.
My more entertaining/diverse/ridiculous/lovable blog can be found at http://mrjdjude.tumblr.com/ and I'll do all of my following from that blog as well!
Thanks and enjoy!
Catching Elephant is a theme by Andy Taylor
I Needed The Help
See what I did there? lol.
Anyway, I saw The Help over the weekend and it evoked a lot of thought out of me. It’s really hard to talk about it. I have a menagerie of feelings. I’m proud to know that we, as a people, have endured the life of the home servant. It makes me SO sad to know that after that, we still have so far to come. It pains me that the movie was more about the white women and their lives than it was of the Black women. I know that the movie didn’t focus on the Black men of the day but I wanted to hear from them. I am both happy and pissed the fuck off at some of the relationships the maids developed with the kids and women they were paid to take care of. I’m saddened that Hollywood will turn anything into a fucking love story! THE ACTING (by some) WAS FUCKING AMAZING! There weren’t that many moments that I realized that I was, in fact, watching a movie, so the production value was good. I don’t love the movie but would add it to my personal collection.
If you know me you know I don’t go to the movies. Before I give you more detailed reasons know that my NUMBER 1 reason is that it costs too much for me. I don’t get paid a lot and I’d rather spend my little bucks on other shit. My other reasons is that I’m just overall dissapointed in what the movies offer. I got so mad while watching the previews (I tweeted, twice! and three times about it and will talk more about that experience later on) that it carried over to the first 20 minutes of the movie. Granted, the first 20 minutes also pissed me off. Those images of Black women having to acquiesce to every whim of these white women irked the shit out of me. It made me uncomfortable, in a good way. I was forced to face my history and I wasn’t able to turn away.
At my new job, I’m working on this play Neighbors that does a similar thing, only with blackface. It makes audiences confront our own complicity and doesn’t let us just shrug it off but makes us sit in it, like a baby who has to stay in their soiled diaper for hours.
Theatre, and art in general, should challenge us, make us think, make us feel, make us talk, inspire us to make change (in ourselves and in the world around us) and entertain. While I disagree, in some sorts with a lot of the plot pieces in the movie, I overall felt like it satisfied my aforementioned criteria.
If you are on the fence on whether to go see this movie or not, please do. If not only to give Viola Davis, Cicely Tyson, Octavia Spencer, Aunjanue Ellis and others credit for their hard word, but to have the experience of confronting your understanding of self in relationship to others, in the context of the experience of Black women working in the domestic service.
I have to do more research on the origins of the movie and the book and will come back on how I feel like the movie did in comparison to the book. I’ll also give my review of the movie. Look out for my post about the previews before the movie and why that adds to the reasons I don’t go to the cinema. Busy week. I hope to write it all…(current history says I won’t…)
If you’ve seen the movie (or read the book) what do you think about the movie?
Article Share: "Top Grossing African-American Comedy Films Of All Time"
Not really much to say here. Just check out the movies. Surprising what is in the top ten. Surprising what’s not (Tyler Perry! Thank God). Also interesting to see what the call an “African-American” comedy. I guess if you have a few key Blacks it’s an AA comedy. lol. What movies do you think should be on the list?
It’s also interesting to view this article as I’ve been thinking about safe spaces to create Black art. I’d be interested in seeing what the top grossing Black movies (regardless of genre) are… Thoughts?
K.O.S. Determination: Response to judesview: "Video Girl"
Tumblr only lets you answer with what, 120 characters? That ain’t enough to make a point.
In regards to Meagan Good’s upcoming role in “Video Girl”:
Some of the best character portrayals are negative. If they were shining examples of our race, then it wouldn’t make for a very interesting story….
Really enjoyed this response right here!
I agree that all portrayals don’t need to be positive but it ESSENTIAL that they are accurate (negative or positive). The subject matter is so important here. I also think it is one that can cause a movie to go bad SO quickly. Like really quickly. The trailer and actress choice make me think they are going into that “really bad” place and unfortunately, that has clouded my judgment. I hope to get out of that funk before it’s too late but we shall see…
Again, thanks for the comment! Keep them coming.
Oh, btw. For me, the difference between Black movies and Black film is message and intent. Very subjective, I understand, but I’m choosing the make a distinction. It can be argued, on both sides, why I shouldn’t make the distinction but that’s my stance. I would say “Medicine for Melancholy”, “Precious”, “Boyz in the Hood” = Black film. “Juanna Man”, “Just Wright”, “The Best Man” = Black movies. Like I said, the line is thin and my judgment is subjective.
