It’s been 14 years since the Denzel Washington/Mila Kunis post-apocalyptic action film, which was already based on a book, The Book of Eli hit theaters, so spoiler warnings shouldn’t be needed but, just in case, spoilers ahead. While it didn’t set box office records The Book of Eli was a flick i thoroughly enjoyed. Denzel + Action always equals watchable in my book but the twist, where you find out that Eli isn’t wearing sunglasses all the time to look cool, but rather because he’s blind, really caught me by surprise. Nothing makes a film more memorable then a well-executed twist.
Had more folks felt the way I did about the film I’m sure we would have had a few sequels, the film ended with a setup for Kunis’s character to carry the next film after all. Alas, it wasn’t universally loved (lots of “sure, it was ok” going on) and didn’t make the studios alot of coin so it seemed Eli was one and done. Deadline was kind enough to let us all know that, thanks to everyone’s favorite Stormtrooper turned hero, we’re going to get an extended stay back in Eli-land in the form of a prequel series starring (and Executive Produced by) John Boyega.
Not alot is known about the series at this point other then Boyega starring and the plot being a prequel. No streaming service has been named yet but Alcon Entertainment, the studio behind the series, is said to be taking offers from the big guys.
Obviously I’ve got some real interest in this project, but it’s not all because of my enjoyment of the source material. Never doubt the power of John Boyega. The guy has been a force in the industry since he first hit the scene way back when in Attack the Block. His outspoken nature and willingness to be a regular guy in the most egotistical and backwards industry there is has endeared him to his fans. To say that he’s the type of guy you root for, well that’s to put it lightly.
I’m still here on the ground in Park City for the Sundance Film Festival, and in just a few hours I’ll be checking out Richard Linklater’s Hit Man, an action-comedy starring Glen Powell. Powell, who recently starred in the rom-com hit Anyone But You, and of course Top Gun: Maverick, also co-wrote the screenplay with Linklater about a cop who goes undercover as a reliable hitman. The film is based on the Texas Monthly article by Skip Hollingsworth, and was acquired by Netflix last fall.
Here’s the synopsis: Gary Johnson is the most sought-after professional killer in New Orleans. To his clients, he is like something out of a movie: the mysterious gun for hire. But if you pay him to rub out a cheating spouse or an abusive boss, you’d better watch your back —he works for the cops. When he breaks protocol to help a desperate woman trying to flee an abusive husband, he finds himself becoming one of his false personas, falling for the woman and flirting with turning into a criminal himself.
The film also stars Adria Arjona, Austin Amelio, Retta, Sanjay Rao, Molly Bernard, and Evan Holtzman.
A review of Hit Man is to come soon! Then Netflix will open the film in select countries on June 7th, preceded by a limited theatrical release.
When James Gunn set about launching DC Studios with Superman: Legacy, the assumption was that all other Superman projects would be put on the shelf. We had already seen them let go of Henry Cavill, and he had JUST returned to show up in Black Adam. But one project remains on track, and it’s the anticipated Black Superman project from JJ Abrams and Ta-Nehisi Coates.
Gunn confirmed the news himself on Threads, answering “Yes” when asked a question by a fan.
Obviously, that’s not a lot to go on, but Gunn has been a vocal supporter of the film in the past, calling it “an exciting movie”. Gunn would elaborate a bit in that io9 interview…
“I know that Chantal Nong, who is the executive on that project, is extremely excited about it,” Gunn said. “So if it comes in and it’s great, which I haven’t read the script, and if the timing is right, that could absolutely happen. That’s totally unrelated. It would be an Elseworlds tale like Joker.”
Coates is the exciting aspect of this Black Superman movie. The accomplished author, writer, and cultural critic came aboard in 2021 with Abrams producing through his Bad Robot banner. But up to this point, none of Abrams’ many planned DC Comics projects have seen the light of day, so there’s good reason to doubt this one will.
That said, the incredible potential of this particular film is such that Warner Bros. would be idiots to let it go. Rumored to be a period piece set at the height of the civil rights movement, it could be a film that offers audiences a new way of perceiving superheroes on the big screen. There’s also a Michael B. Jordan Superman miniseries that was announced a few years ago but seems to have vanished.
EXHIBITING FORGIVENESS: Renowned visual artist Titus Kaphar's powerful debut forced me to consider my own feelings about forgiveness and absolution, my past relationship with my father, and so much more.
The movies misunderstand forgiveness all of the time. It’s intentional on Hollywood’s part. To achieve the proper happy ending, forgiveness needs to be earned and absolute. But that’s not reality. In real life, forgiveness is messy, and complicated, and rarely ends with two people walking off happily into the sunset, the past erased from history. Artist Titus Kaphar’s feature directing debut, the remarkable Exhibiting Forgiveness, understands how complicated it truly can be as he explores generational trauma and forgiveness between a son and his estranged father.
Pulling from his own troubled relationship with his father, Kaphar crafts a film that is, let’s be honest, a really tough watch. And I mean that in the best possible sense. This is a movie that pulls no punches emotionally, and it will be triggering for a lot of people, myself included. There are lines of dialogue in this movie that are nearly identical to things I have said to people in my own family seeking to get back into my good graces. Suffice it to say, Exhibiting Forgiveness is a masterclass in authenticity and people should be prepared to go through some shit while watching it. In the press & industry screening I attended, some clearly weren’t ready, and fled when it became too much.
The wonderful André Holland plays Tarrell, an artist plagued by memories of abuses suffered at the hands of his crack-addicted father, La’Ron (John Earl Jelks, a revelation). These memories manifest themselves as night terrors, which frighten his singer-songwriter wife Aisha (Andra Day) and their young son. He channels much of his anger and pain into a his paintings, attempting to heal those wounds on canvas. But it isn’t enough; even with all of this success, Tarrell can’t move forward from the past. It just keeps dragging him down.
And then there’s Tarrell’s mother, Joyce, played by the great Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor. Joyce is supposed to be moving from the home she’s always known and in with her son’s family, but she’s reluctant. She doesn’t see the past the same way she does, choosing to remember the good times rather than focusing solely on the trauma. This is something Tarrell simply can’t understand.
When La’Ron reenters their lives after a violent incident nearly gets him killed, Tarrell and Joyce are at odds over how to respond. Clean and sober now for the first time in a long time, La’Ron wants to try and make amends, but Tarrell can’t see past the man his father was, and for good reason. Both La’Ron and Joyce are people of deep faith. Joyce uses it to explain her forgiveness of the man she once loved and perhaps still does. But La’Ron uses it to ease his own tortured soul, and proving that he is still just as selfish as he used to be, he continues to try and defend his past actions. We see some of it flashback, when La’Ron would work a young Tarrell (played by Ian Foreman) to the bone, all day without breaks, injuries be damned. And then use the money for his next score.
Kaphar passes no judgments on La’Ron, either, when it would be so easy to do it. La’Ron was raised by a father, another man of faith, who showed his love through brutality. And La’Ron thinks that because he worked hard all of his life, it must’ve worked. He acknowledges that drugs ruined his relationship to his wife and son, but watching Tarrell succeed has made him think the harsh treatment was worth it and obviously effective. Tarrell is understandably livid at this notion, having grown up in a state of fear, having watched his mother be abused physically at this man’s hands. The deep-rooted fear within Tarrell is that he might pass this legacy of abuse on to his son, and he has made it his mission to never be the same as La’Ron.
There are no easy answers here that Kaphar provides. For a first-time filmmaker and one with an artist background, Kaphar’s film is simply constructed and graceful, allowing the wealth of talented actors to fully embrace their roles. Especially here at Sundance, numerous movies find the filmmaker relieving their burdens through storytelling, but they all start to look and feel the same. Exhibiting Forgiveness feels like a story that only Kaphar could tell with this kind of specificity. This is a film that comes from someone who understands that forgiveness is rarely about the person asking for it.
Ghostlight lets you know its theater roots from its opening scene. As Dan (Keith Kupferer), a middle-aged construction worker, wakes up at the crack of dawn to head to his site, a tinny version of Oklahoma’s “Oh What A Beautiful Morning” plays over the scene. It might seem clićhe in any other movie, but it sets the tone early that this film will balance a grounded reality with a clever sense of humor.
Written by Kelly O’Sullivan, who co-directed with her husband Alex Thompson, Ghostlight takes a look at Dan’s inner life as he decides to enter the local theater community. At work, he is struggling with disassociation and anger episodes. At home, his relationship with his wife, Sharon (Tara Mallen) is deteriorating under the pressure of a lawsuit and his daughter Daisy’s (Katherine Mallen Kupferer) emotional outbursts in the wake of a family tragedy are pushing him further into loneliness. Unwilling to address his own feelings, an outburst at work leads local actress Rita, (Dolly De Leon) to recruit him for her community theater group’s production of Romeo and Juliet.
A veteran Chicago theater actor, Keith Kupferer takes O’Sullivan’s and Thompson’s tragicomedy and transforms it into a performance that is engaging and raw. You don’t always agree with his choices but Kupferer’s macho vulnerability endears you to him. One important note is that Dan’s entire family is played by Kupferer’s family. You can feel the connection between the three actors, adding layers of history and authenticity to the project.
Dolly De Leon, who broke out for American audiences in Triangle of Sadness, is fearless as Rita. Matching Kupferer’s own energy, she expertly guides Dan and the audience into this world. You can feel Rita’s own regrets and insecurities about playing Juliet at an older age bubbling beneath her performance.
Bringing humor and warmth is the theater troop played by Hanna Dworkin, H.B Ward, Tommy Rivera–Vega, Alma Washington, and Dexter Dworkin. Lia Cubilete steps in for two scenes, delivering an emotionally charged performance that is brief but astonishing.
O’Sullivan brilliantly twists humor and tragedy into a story that feels overwhelming human and answers the question of why people need art and community. Constantly alluding to the Shakespeare play performed in the show, her writing is rich in subtext. The pacing lags in the final act and a good ten minutes could be trimmed from the runtime, but overall, O’Sullivan and Thompson’s Ghostlight is one of the best depictions of community theater seen onscreen.
Sure, it’s not hitting 2010’s MCU money but Jason Statham’s The Beekeeper is making a case for mid-budget action films getting a theatrical release. While it’s $31M domestic take doesn’t quite reach it’s reported $40M budget, the worldwide figures sit at $75M after 2 weeks, meaning the studios going to make some decent profit.
3. Wonka– $6.4M/$187M
Wow…not only did Wonka keep it’s place at the #3 spot but it replicated last weeks numbers almost exactly, pulling in $6.4M for the second week in a row.
A cool premise wasn’t enough to save this Zero G tension-fest from mediocre reviews and a C- Cinemascore. As this week’s only new wide release finishing outside the Top 5 has to sting
8. Night Swim– $2.7M/$23.7M
9. The Boys in the Boat– $2.5M/$43.8M
10. Poor Things– $2M/$20M
Emma Stone’s Poor Things closes out the top 10 this week with the culmination of a very slow roll out. Though the film is now in its seventh week of release it is just now in more then 1000 theaters, adding 820 screens to its showing for a total of 1420.
In the opening moments of Steven Soderbergh’s Presence, his camera swoops and swirls throughout an empty, multi-tiered home in an idyllic suburb. While Soderbergh’s style is always distinguished, more so than a lot of other directors with no fingerprint at all, here his lens is an actual presence, a supernatural force lurking in some places, observing carefully in others. We’re trained to consider all such entities to be menacing, but Soderbergh plays his true intentions close to the vest in this deliberately-paced film about a new family that moves into the haunted home.
Once again working with frequent collaborator in screenwriter David Koepp, Soderbergh crafts a lean ghost story that isn’t focused on scares, but in the building of tension among a troubled family in a confined space. To be charitable, it takes some time to get going properly, and you wish there was a bit more of the dark wit shown in the initial moments. Julia Fox has a small role as a realtor who, when we first meet her, has just arrived seconds before the potential clients arrive to see the house. “Oh I always arrive early”, she lies almost immediately. Lucy Liu is the family matriarch, Rebekah, a no-nonsense type used to getting her way. She already knows she wants this house before anybody else can look at it. Her husband, Chris, played by Chris Sullivan, isn’t sold but he knows better than to push the issue. Rebekah sees the place as being in the perfect school district for her favorite child, Tyler (Eddy Maday), a competitive swimmer who would benefit from it. Their daughter Chloe (Callina Liang) is sullen and quiet, still grieving from the recent deaths of two friends by what we are led to believe are accidental overdoses. Tyler has no problem rubbing it in Chloe’s face, while Chris is worried she could go down the same path.
Soderbergh establishes the contours of this family dynamic easily with no fuss, but Presence ironically takes its time making an impression. We learn precious little about their background; all of the details we need are dished out conservatively as they interact. It becomes clear that Chris and Rebekah are going through some marital discord, and that Rebekah has begun focusing all of her energy in supporting Tyler while ignoring Chloe’s obvious calls for help. When strange things start happening around Chloe, such as items being moved and a closet shelf collapsing mysteriously, nobody believes her when she says she can sense something unnatural in the house.
But Chloe does find a willing listener in Ryan (West Mulholland), one of Tyler’s friends and one of those guys you instantly know is going to be trouble. His words drip honey, and he comes with his own stories of anguish. It isn’t long before he and Chloe are hooking up in secret, but as his manipulation turns more sinister, the presence…well, it makes its presence felt. This happens again later, as the entity shows itself to the entire family after Tyler regales them with a horrible story about a humiliating prank on a girl in his class. Rebekah loves every word of it, while Chris vocalizes his displeasure. The presence isn’t having it, either, revealing to us the first inkling of a motivation why it has chosen to be active now.
After a build that’s almost too slow, Presence ramps up in intensity, backed up by an escalating score by Zack Ryan that takes on more of a horror tone. The long wait is worth it, as disturbing motives are revealed, others become attracted to the entity’s presence, and a shocking sacrificial act that will leave you gasping for air. Under difference hands, this would be a bloated Hollywood thriller with jump scares, extraneous characters, and unnecessary visual effects. But Soderbergh only needs 85-minutes, an eerie home, and a solid cast to spin a satisfying ghost story that is more tangible than ethereal.
The instant Jackie (Katy O’Brian) hitchhikes into the dusty southwestern town at the center of Rose Glass’s audacious, sexy, queer crime-thriller Love Lies Bleeding, all eyes are on her. And it’s easy to see why. A bodybuilder with rippling pecs, a smile to die for, and a take-no-shit attitude, Jackie is the kind of person who sweeps into a place and turns it upside down. For Lou (Kristen Stewart), who works a humiliating job at the local gym, one with a perpetually clogged-up toilet she fixes by hand, Jackie is the most interesting thing to happen there in ages. And Lou desperately needs something good to happen in her life.
Glass, who became an instant fan-favorite with her breakout film, Saint Maud, is so skilled at capturing a specific kind of mood without beating you over the head. Set in 1989 when greed was considered an honorable trait and anti-drug messages were everywhere, everyone is looking out for #1. You can see it in the inspirational messages on the gym wall, “Only Losers Quit”, “Pain Is Weakness Leaving The Body”, “No Pain No Gain”. There’s a thread of mania running through these gym rats and the town itself, and Jackie fits right in.
When Jackie and Lou meet, the sparks are instant, but so too is the obsession. It would be almost unbelievable if not for the legit physical chemistry of their smoldering sexual encounters. Glass is unafraid to show two impassioned women giving themselves utterly to the other, body and soul.
In the case of the former, the body becomes a vehicle for the film’s wild swings in tone and genre. At times a gory body horror, superhero movie, mob film, and Bonnie ‘n Clyde crime thriller, Love Lies Bleeding is a roller coaster that you have to fully invest in and invest in early. Especially since neither Lou or Jackie is someone you can easily cheer on, as revelations reveal the true depths of their tortured pasts, and how they inform some of the indefensible actions they take later. With Jackie focused on an upcoming bodybuilding competition in Vegas, Lou gladly peddles steroids which she injects into her new lover. Hey, it was the ’80s and everyone was on ‘roids. These injections cause the already-massive Jackie’s body to swell, veins popping, muscles peaking superhumanly.
But this also runs counter to aspects of Lou’s character that are truly honorable. We learn that she is estranged from her father, Lou Sr. (Ed Harris), a Nevada crime kingpin with a bug obsession and a horrendous bald-ponytail combo that would have anyone running in the opposite direction. We learn, through searing red flashbacks, that Lou was once an enthusiastic sidekick to his criminal activities. Now she stays in town largely to protect her sister Beth (Jena Malone, always amazing), a battered wife at the hands of her douchey husband JJ (Dave Franco, sporting a heinous mullet), who also knows a thing or two about Jackie that Lou might not like. With the FBI snooping around, and Daisy (Anna Baryshnikov), an overly aggressive former fling that Lou has been trying to avoid, the situation grows messy very quickly.
A combination of factors, such as roid rage and nicotine withdrawal, heighten Jackie and Lou’s uncontrollable love affair. They say that love is blind, but these two make bad decision-making an art form. And it’s these choices, driven by carnal obsession, that send Love Lies Bleeding into unpredictable genre territory. No longer just a doomed lovers story, grisly violence sends the film spinning into thriller territory, and there are other unhinged aspects introduced as Glass and co-writer Weronika Tofilska repeatedly turn the tables.
And while the film occasionally gets so bizarre that we lose a sense of who these characters are, it is impossible to look away from. Although I must say it’s a bit awkward to have another Sundance movie, following last year’s Magazine Dreams, about a ‘roided up bodybuilder with a violent streak. O’Brian’s raw, kinetic performance as Jackie, a time bomb waiting to explode if there ever was one, is in perfect contrast to the steely and vulnerable Stewart, whose Lou is the real driver of much of the action. She’s also the vehicle for much of Glass’ dark sense of humor, seen every time Lou is left to clean up in Jackie’s savage wake.
Love Lies Bleeding is a big-swing type of movie, and Glass is a filmmaker with a bold, uncompromising vision. This lovers-on-the-lam movie goes to some crazy, freakish places and it doesn’t always make sense. At times gritty and surreal, this story of twisted love is going to inspire a legion of ride-or-die fans, and anyone else better get out of its way.
A24 will release Love Lies Bleeding into theaters on March 8th.
If the recent trend of horror movies is to be believed, all party games should be banned outright. Following on the heels of last year’s Sundance breakout, Talk to Me, Greg Jardin’s head-spinning identity crisis horror It’s What’s Inside offers another party game that ends in nightmarish fashion. Only this time it’s not a mummified hand dragging partygoers into the abyss. It’s bubbling jealousy, resentment, unwanted guests, and terrible secrets among a group of friends attending one’s pre-wedding rager that threatens to doom them all in a way that will have them questioning their identity and their sanity.
It’ll have you questioning a lot of shit, too. I’m not afraid to admit that I got lost more than once as It’s What’s Inside spun its wonky web. But it was that feeling of confusion that heightened the experience, along with Jardin’s dazzling visual style and several go-for-broke performances of surprising complexity. We get a sense that this will be more than your typical horror in the opening moments, as sweet-natured Shelby (Brittany O’Grady) attempts to spice up her love life with longtime boyfriend Cyrus (James Morosini) aka Cyrus the Virus, only for it to fail miserably because he’s more interested in porn than her.
So it’s a rough time to be in a bad patch relationship-wise, as they are headed to a party celebrating the nuptials of their college pal Reuben (Devon Terrell) and his fiancee Sophia, their union emblazoned forever as #Reuphia. With hopes of her own nuptials seemingly dashed, Sophia is a jumble of insecurities and nagging jealousies, many of them aimed secretly at their friend Nikki (Alycia Debnam-Carey), a gorgeous social media influencer with millions of followers. Also attending the event are their hippie pal Maya (Nina Bloomgarden), Brooke (Reina Hardesty), and the hard-partying Dennis (Gavin Leatherwood). With all of these clashing personalities and long-held grudges, the night might’ve been a thorny one anyway, but the arrival of an unexpected guest, former friend Forbes (David W. Thompson), promises it will be.
Forbes, who nobody expected to show up and isn’t exactly welcome, arrives with a suspicious green suitcase. I’m not going to spoil what’s inside because that would ruin too much of the fun. But let’s say it contains something that forces these friends to question everyone and even themselves. There’s a bit of roleplay, ironic considering how the movie begins, some mystery, and a lot of problem-solving in the vein of a live-action game of Among Us. This game brings old grudges to the surface, realigns friends into foes, and might even involve a little bit of reincarnation.
If it sounds like a lot for a little horror movie to handle, well, it is. Intentionally so. Jardin’s rapid-fire dialogue and quick camera cuts accelerate the feeling that you’re being whipped around uncontrollably. As each character reveals their ulterior motives and sheds the persona they’ve constructed, It’s What’s Inside becomes really tricky to keep track of. Who is really saying or doing what they intend, who is setting a trap, who has revenge on their mind? It’s imperative to keep track of every single word and every gesture to get a sense of what is truly going on.
As for the cast, all do a terrific job in surprisingly rich roles that require them to know every single character intimately. If there’s a problem, it’s that these people don’t give you a reason to like any of them, and this is a game where there are definite winners and losers. This becomes a bigger issue as the stakes are raised to a deadly degree, and we find that we care as little about them as they care about one another.
With the backdrop of our social media-obsessed culture, puzzling nature of the story, and gorgeous cast of rising stars, It’s What’s Inside feels destined to be a buzzy A24 acquisition, although I hope they consider a new title. This movie is just a lot of fun to watch, especially with a crowd, and will be even more fun with a group of your own friends, who might also have their own secret agendas.
Oh boy, did I want The American Society of Magical Negroes to be a stand-out film here at Sundance. Did I ever. This comes from someone who has seen his share of movies debut in Park City that attempted to satirize, to a largely white audience, tough issues of race. The success rate is spotty at best, but with writer/director Kobi Libii’s fantastical comedy, the strikeout is ugly as he takes a terrifically clever idea, a secret cabal of magical Black folks whose goal it is to keep white people’s lives easier, and do absolutely nothing with it. Combined with an irritating lead performance and a finale so far afield from the central theme that it should’ve worn track shoes, this movie ends up a stand-out for all of the wrong reasons.
Justice Smith, who is having a dreadful Sundance if you’ve been tracking the response to his other movie here, plays the only role he seems equipped to; that of a shy, timid, awkward dude fearful of confrontation. As Aren, we are introduced to him as he drops a barrage of “excuse me’s” and “pardon me’s” as he wades through a sea of art collectors at a gallery show. Aren’s piece, a pathetic rainbow yarn sculpture that he can’t even muster up the courage to explain, is passed over by every white potential buyer. Confused as part of the wait staff, then booted from the gallery for his lack of selling power, Aren’s mawkish demeanor nearly gets him killed at an ATM when a drunk white woman hands him her purse, then accuses him of being a thief. Fortunately, Roger (David Alan Grier) comes to his defense, magically placing the purse back in the woman’s hands, then offering her raging boyfriend a nice BBQ spot up the street for them to go and eat at.
It’s Roger who sees potential in Aren, and recruits him to join the titular organization. While Roger begins detailing the group’s purpose, which is to use their magical powers to curb white fragility and anger so that Black people aren’t murdered by them, it’s clear to see that Libii probably had this as his starting point for the film and never developed anything decent to spring out of that. This is a movie constantly in search of a story to support Libii’s one cool idea, which is to lampoon magical negro movies such as The Legend of Bagger Vance (starring Will Smith) and The Green Mile (with Michael Clarke Duncan), and others such as Driving Miss Daisy. While doing so, Libii shows that he also understands how problematic such an organization can be. They must always be in service to the needs of their unaware white client, and that means hiding the Black parts of themselves that white people find uncomfortable. They are gifted with the ability to see a “white tears meter” and when it fills past the breaking point, who knows what kind of violent could erupt.
But Libii’s initial premise can only go so far. It probably should’ve been a nice sketch idea on The Daily Show or something, because there isn’t enough to support a feature-length movie. And so the story becomes a rom-com, a rather bland one at that. Aren is tasked with helping out Jason (Drew Tarver), an entitled artist at a global tech company who has grown angry and frustrated for reasons unknown. It’s Aren’s job to figure out what he wants, and to make sure Jason gets it. But Jason is a prick, and unaware of how bigoted he is. Not only is he racist, but misogynist as well, treating his “work wife” Lizzy (An-Li Bogan, a real charmer) like she’s undeserving of credit for the equal work she does. He doesn’t treat Aren much better; more like the hired help than a colleague.
Oh, and there’s another problem. Jason wants to ask Lizzy out on a date, but Aren is already falling in love with her. But to use one’s powers in a self-serving manner and not to help the White client is to threaten all of the Society’s powers. Dilemma! Help Jason be happy, or go where your heart leads.
Aren’s dilemma becomes the real story in The American Society of Magical Negroes, not actual insight into race relations. I would’ve settled for more riffs on the absurdity of the magical negro archetype, and how it has evolved over the years. We see it in bits and pieces, wonderfully opulent flashbacks to past members of the Society. But we don’t get a real sense of the group, the scope of what they do, and how they began. It seems that Libii really wanted to make a movie about an awkward mixed-race guy navigating a volatile racial climate at work (where the company’s facial recognition software doesn’t recognize Black faces) while also trying to find love. And so he shoehorned it into this other idea he had spoofing the magical negro trope, and the two don’t make sense being in the same orbit.
It’s also impossible to miss how incredibly safe this movie is. Libii couldn’t have made a more tame version of this story if he tried…oh wait, he did try, and succeeded in doing so. The American Society of Magical Negroes isn’t scathing or edgy at all. Ironically, it’s designed so that white audiences can feel comfortable buying a ticket for it. Late in the film, Aren comes out of nowhere, driven by his need for love, and speaks out in defense of his own existence. It is a powerful, impassioned speech backed up by nothing, and so it rings hollow. After the world premiere screening I attended, a woman stood up and said that it brought her to tears and I’m glad it had such an impact on her even if it made me wonder if she was secretly a producer on the film.
The American Society of Magical Negroes opens on March 15th.
