With the Middleburg Film Festival right around the corner for us here in VA, one of the movies that everyone is eager to see is American Fiction. The feature debut by writer/director Cord Jefferson stars Jeffrey Wright, an actor who simply has never given a false performance ever, and centers on Thelonius “Monk” Ellison, a frustrated novelist fed up with an industry that cashes in on “Black” stereotypes.
The interesting thing is what Monk does about his frustration with a system that glorifies such stereotypes. Using a pseudonym, he writes a book filled with cliches about Black inner-city life, and to his horror watches as it becomes a bestseller.
Also in the cast are Tracee Ellis Ross, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams, Adam Brody, Keith David, Issa Rae, and Sterling K. Brown.
Here’s the synopsis: AMERICAN FICTION is Cord Jefferson’s hilarious directorial debut, which confronts our culture’s obsession with reducing people to outrageous stereotypes. Jeffrey Wright stars as Monk, a frustrated novelist who’s fed up with the establishment profiting from “Black” entertainment that relies on tired and offensive tropes. To prove his point, Monk uses a pen name to write an outlandish “Black” book of his own, a book that propels him to the heart of hypocrisy and the madness he claims to disdain.
American Fiction took home the People’s Choice Award after its TIFF debut, suggesting a crowd-pleasing effort. MGM and Orion will release the film into theaters on December 15th, with an expansion on December 22nd.
