Man, they were very light-skinned. For a few minutes, I wasn't even sure if the actress playing Denzel's wife was white or black. On a side note, they were both absolutely stunningly gorgeous.
But considering the importance that race plays in this movie, couldn't they have cast some equally beautiful, but darker-skinned actresses?
I asked the doctor to take your picture so I can look at you from inside as well.
My opinion is if they have to cast a black woman they go for the lightest they can find.
"I don’t mind being in a man’s world as long as I can be a woman in it"~Marilyn Monroe
What I thought was really important was the relationship Antwone had with Joy Bryant's character. I probably also didn't think much of it because I'm "light skinned" myself. Joy Bryant isn't pale skinned though.
The actress who played Denzel's wife didn't look "white" to me either, even though I was surprised when my mother told me that she was black.
I agree, they were both beautiful.
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Yeah right....
To the OP, you're not being racist; you've just stumbled upon one of the most denied and untouchable topics in Black America; Light skin versus dark skin women. This method of casting the "good" women as light-skinned and the "bad" is so prevalent in black casted movies that ROGER EBERT had to speak out about it (He's married to a dark-skinned woman) Other than Spike Lee's "School Daze ", NOBODY in the black community ever seems to want to address this phonomenon at any length, beyond the previous poster's "best actress" excuse.(not singling you out but it's the usual response for this BS).
I think it's just another example of the indictment that deep down we still hate ourselves thus the hair straightening and the "green and yellow" of most black men....but we'll never admit it.
"Never underestimate the power of denial", American Beauty
I don't really care about the skin-tone, although the argument has been made repeatedly in black culture as referenced before.
I wouldn't have replaced Joy Bryant for the world. I thought she was perfect. I mean perfect.
One question I guess I'd ask is if Zoe Saldana had been picked, who is of darker skin tone, would you complain that she isn't actually black, but South American? It's a valid question. She was good in Drumline around the same time this movie was made, but not near the actress Bryant was at the time.
Denzel Washington's wife gave a very bland performance in my opinion, so she could have been cast with someone better. Again, couldn't care less about her skin tone.
I had trouble watching the movie precisely because of the racist casting. It was so blatant I felt really uncomfortable.
shareUmm, Joy Bryant isn't light skinned.
"Sometimes, a girl needs a half." Sex and The City
Yes, she isn't light skinned like Beyonce, but she also wasn't as dark as the horrible darker skinned women in the film. Nor as dark as the leading men.
shareYOU GUYS WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE!!THEY'RE ALL BLACK NO MORE.NO LESS!!
You want to play the game, you'd better know the rules, love.
-Harry Callahan
I hope you are kidding. If movies only make dark skinned black women the evil one, than yes it matters. That is a type of racism.
share^Exactly!!!
shareThe main evil female character, his care taker Mrs. Tate's, was light skinned. So I don't get your point. Furthermore, Joy Bryant is not light skinned. Salli who played Berta, is Black. I wasn't confused about that at all. The movie was full of black people with different complexions and It seems like you're being irrational.
shareMost American Black families have people of various skin colors from light to dark. It would be weird to have all the Black people match skin color.
In fact, the first scene where the little boy goes from the field into the barn, it looks strange not to have a wider range of skin tones. Most people in the scene seem to be dark brown. If you ever see a gathering of Black people in America, you'll usually see people colored from beige to black with everything in between.
I didn't find the two main women to be out of place or unusual.
No two persons ever watch the same movie.share
I don't think race plays an important role here, I think the movie is about the story of an individual. You find a lot of movies of this type about white people (I personally like "The White Oleander" even though it's not based on a true story), but this is the first one I find about a black man who had a really bad childhood and made it through life and I think this is what makes it special. We're not used to seing this sort of reaction, everyone knows the abuses and strugles black kids face but usually they end up joining gangs or using drugs and going to jail because of their personal dramas they don't succeed in life... All the way through the movie I couldn't stop thinking this didn't sound realistic because he had everything set up to go that path and yet he turned out just fine! It's really amazing and humanizing.
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