Horrible

I saw this film at the Cannes market. They were not allowing any press people inside (press people are allowed to come see some of the market screenings, so they can do write ups about the film, most people want them too, it helps visibility with the film), instead, they wanted the opposite... this was already a bad sign.

In this film, every character is talking down to every other character, it was almost insulting. And through the dialogue, I felt as though they were even talking down to the audience, whomever would be watching it. I don't know how to explain it. I would say "watch the film to see for yourself," but if this film gets distribution, I'd urge you not to watch it. It is a huge waste of time. A too blatant, that it almost becomes a nonsensical mess. It's like the script had a virus on it and I just want to Norton the word program to undo the mess!

In the beginning of the film, Sarah Jessica Parker, who is the Dean of Student Life, is talking to this guy to tell him he needs to change his nationality from New Rican to Puerto Rican so he could get his scholarship. The kid is pissed "why should I have to change my nationality to Puerto Rican, if I haven't even been there, I'm New Rican!" (meaning, a Puerto Rican born in New York). The kid had no valid point, because if he has already established he's from Puerto Rican descent then he should understand why his nationality is Puerto Rican. Afterall, being from New York isn't a "nationality," it's a city. I myself am a New Yorker, and if my family were from Sri Lanka, I would never want to call myself a "New Lankan," that isn't a nationality, South Asian is. Secondly, SJP's character already told the student that he was going to get a scholarship because he was smart & because of his paper. That in itself already should have showed him that his scholarship was about his abilities as an individual. But then, he goes off as if, his intelligence and paper doesn't matter anymore because he can't put "New Rican" as his nationality. My first assumption based on this opening, was this film would be about SJP's character dealing with bratty kids like this. But in the next scene, a racial hate crime occurs on the campus to a different individual and SUDDENLY, the film sides with this kid who wants to declare New Rican as a nationality and it's about how SJP was wrong to let him get away with calling himself a "Puerto Rican" and not "New Rican." The writers really should have rethought their opening and rewrote it in a way so they wouldn't be so hypocritical. Because SJP's character seemed as though she cared about individuals... Individualism is one of many keys to dissolving racial issues, because it's a change of mindset where you start looking at people for who they are and not letting their looks define who they are. Parker's character becomes a woman who cares about each of her students (ethnic or not) into a woman who wanted to teach in the Vermont college because it was predominantly white (ironically, the entire school seems to have more minorities than what Parker claims, when she says "I came here because it was all white." This too comes out of nowhere. Based on the casting, I was thinking "really? It is all white?" It is as if the writers decided "page 70 will be a great page for the Dean, who up to this point, seems to care about her students and how they feel about the racist acts going on campus, to a woman who really decided to move to Vermont because she wanted to segregate herself with the white people." If the writers wanted to preach something, they obviously didn't go to seminary school.

Later, this issue becomes this inyourface, everyone who deals with racism is right, even if they create their own racism and the people who aren't faced with it are wrong. Almost saying, if you are a minority, you are right. And all the caucasians are racist. I was hoping to be proven wrong the entire movie, that the movie was more than this. But the resolved in the ending was basically trying to say that all caucasians are racist, even if they don't say anything racist or conduct anything racist, because they are all thinking it. This puts things into people's mouths. . . or should I say "minds." But all the minds, amongst the faculty in the film, suddenly agree to this kind of thinking.

Parker's character befriends a reporter who she recognizes from his past news segments in Chicago. They start hanging out and talking and go to a bar and dance, etc. They seem as though they are very attracted to one another. But then one day, the reporter comes into her office and asks her to go to a forum or dinner, I forget, and Parker's character says "No, I can't, can't you see I'm busy." (in fact, she was busy, she was stressed out writing something for the school). BUT all of a sudden, randomly, the reporter goes "Just say it, it's because I'm black." And you are expecting Parker's character to be like "Where the hell is this coming from? I'm obviously attracted to you. But I'm really busy." But instead, Parker basically admits it has something to do with that. It was almost ridiculous. If that really was true then the writers should have built her character up to that point to come off like that. Not write her character as someone who was attracted to the reporter and then suddenly not because of his race.

But the movie continues on with random outbursts like these. People pointing fingers. It is so ridiculous. I don't understand how Sarah Jessica Parker, agreed to do a movie like this, being a woman from NYC. On the other hand I also feel as though she was miscast, because she basically sounded like and had the same mannerisms as Carrie Bradshaw, but with dyed brown hair. But to be honest, maybe no one should have been cast in this role, because the movie shouldn't have been made. Not with this script and certainly not with this mindset. Mindset, meaning, generalizing race and generalizing everyone and what they think and generalizing people's thoughts.

I was a little offended by the film, because I AM a minority and I felt the film was racist in itself. Obviously, I know the film probably initially intend to be quite the opposite from being racist, to give a social awareness, but the final product was exactly what I have said. The film tried too hard to segregate people and their interests that it all became a blender of fluff and mess. The "twist" in the end, was something you already knew was going to happen, based on the writing of the film. And the "twist" was supposed to parallel Parker's life, that was so blatantly cheesy and stupid.

The film starring Sarah Jessica Parker, became a film starring, "are you sure it's Sarah Jessica Parker? Maybe it's a lookalike. Because I doubt she'd do a movie like this."

Notes from the rest of the cast... Miranda Richardson probably was the best performer out of all. But I still think what a waste of talent to do a poorly done movie like this.