MovieChat Forums > Motives (2004) Discussion > all Afro-American film

all Afro-American film


This film tries to combine several genres, in a quite a strange mix. The plot happens in Atlanta, and involves a businessman and restaurant owner married un-happily apparently with a charity organization leader, involved in all type of dubious activities, including stock market fraud, murder, and a steamy extra-marital affair. The pace and the moral approach is of a 70s TV soap opera, combined with a 90s erotic thriller. Nothing too bad, but nothing original or really interesting either. Characters are one-dimensional, their physical appearance is all that counts. The plot twist towards the end works quite well, or it worked for me in any case.

The odd thing is that all main characters, without any exception are Afro-American. This does not work in my opinion - the American society as I know it (I am not living inthe US, but I am visiting quite frequently) is multi-racial, and reversed segregation does not work, not in life, and not on screen. Why? Is this meant to be a revenge to the all-white segregated approach of film making in the 40s or 50s? Well, it does not succeed to be more than a DVD rental minor film, and the reason is probably that it never tries to be more.

Not to be mis-understood, Afro-American film-making can be great (mentioning just Spike Lee is kind of trivial) but only when it approaches life and minority causes in a realistic and good taste manner. This is not the case here.

reply

Please explain what you meant when you said "in a realistic and good taste manner."

Afros are coming back!

reply

'Realistic' like in credible, a subject and a story I can believe in and I can identify with. 'Good taste' relates to my personal feeling about the quality of acting, directing, etc. The soap TV style of this movie does not belong show too much of it - in my view of course.

reply

Okay, I must've read it wrong. I thought you were another one of these people who don't like these kind of movies because it gives the black characters high paying jobs and success.

I see where you're coming from, and most importantly, you clearly stated that this was your personal view. Most people don't do that.

Afros are coming back!

reply

Give me a break, why should white people be in this movie? Its an all black film and I am glad about that.

reply

Interesting that the OP would say reverse segregation is why this film does not work. I didn't read anything in the OP about non-reverse segregation not working. So I guess that means white people can do it, but if we do and the movie fails it's because we excluded white people and not because of the merits (or lack thereof) of the film itself.

Interesting.

reply

stop trying to water down this movie because it has an all black cast....go spend your time doing other things...AFRo American??? what the hell is that??? how about we call you euro american ....? go learn some history and grow up.....and stop being a little stupid ignorant kid.....movies are movies.....stop making it about color.....

reply

i definately agree with the last 3 post

reply

Exactly what Cocoa_cat said. Furthermore, to the original poster, you don't live in the US, so you obviously don't know that there are such things are black communities. Just because black people are a minority does not mean that you can only see a total of one or two of them in any given setting.

reply

There are many afr am communities. U just briefly visit the US so I guess u didnt visit them. When u go 2 the US where do u visit? There r many afr am communities all thru out the southe bc of slavery.

U call this reverse racism, but how about the fact that in "Friends", there was just 1 afr am in all of NY in 10 yrs?

India.Arie'sTESTIMONY VOL 1:LIFE&RELATIONSHIP

all Afro-American film
by - dromasca on Sat Sep 25 2004 03:35:25
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This film tries to combine several genres, in a quite a strange mix. The plot happens in Atlanta, and involves a businessman and restaurant owner married un-happily apparently with a charity organization leader, involved in all type of dubious activities, including stock market fraud, murder, and a steamy extra-marital affair. The pace and the moral approach is of a 70s TV soap opera, combined with a 90s erotic thriller. Nothing too bad, but nothing original or really interesting either. Characters are one-dimensional, their physical appearance is all that counts. The plot twist towards the end works quite well, or it worked for me in any case.

The odd thing is that all main characters, without any exception are Afro-American. This does not work in my opinion - the American society as I know it (I am not living inthe US, but I am visiting quite frequently) is multi-racial, and reversed segregation does not work, not in life, and not on screen. Why? Is this meant to be a revenge to the all-white segregated approach of film making in the 40s or 50s? Well, it does not succeed to be more than a DVD rental minor film, and the reason is probably that it never tries to be more.

Not to be mis-understood, Afro-American film-making can be great (mentioning just Spike Lee is kind of trivial) but only when it approaches life and minority causes in a realistic and good taste manner. This is not the case here.

reply

[deleted]

How did you wind up illiterate?

reply

[deleted]

[deleted]

[deleted]

I agree with you that films rarely reflect a multicultural society. Many Caucasians balk at films featuring an "all black" cast, yet look when you look at the casts of the majority of studio films (I'm talking today, not 1940s and 50s), no one markets them as the "all white production of..." Yet that is essentially what they are. Hollywood is slow to progress.

reply