There are movies that manage to touch upon current issues and then there are films that speak to you, as an audience member, and your life experiences. Luckily, for me, Dear White People managed to be both of those films, and extremely successful at that. While Justin Simien does encounter some minor stumbles, in his capable hands Dear White People is a perfect film for today’s generation.
The plot for Dear White People is pretty simple. Samantha White (a revelatory Tessa Thompson), a media arts major and host of the popular show “Dear White People”, is fed up with the state of the all-black residence hall Parker/Armstrong and decides to run for Head of House against the golden boy son of the Dean of Students, and her former flame, Troy (Brandon P. Bell). She wins just as a reality TV show comes onto campus searching for a new story and when a fellow classmate (Teyonah Parris) has her pitch reject, and vows to get back in good graces with the producer. What should be a simple transition becomes tough when she faces off with Kurt, the son of the university president, and after a big scene, begins to set in motion a large chain of events. Also involved in this is Lionel Higgins (Tyler James Williams), a lonely black student, who is given the task of covering the controversy for the newspaper. It all leads to a big party thrown by Kurt’s frat and the ramifications it has on the campus.
Now while that might have sounded like a long synopsis, the film is actually put together extremely well. The script is about as solid as one can expect from an ensemble piece, giving each character a moment to shine as well as tying all of the plots together. This is a large cast and not once did I feel as though the script lost anyone in the shuffle. More importantly than just keeping everyone in the shuffle, is giving the characters the right words to say and themes to play off of. Simien’s script just goes there completely, not pulling any punches along the way. There’s broad comedy, slapstick, drama, uncomfortable jokes, shifting racial politics and yet nothing seemed forced. Dear White People is a film that understand that discussions of race can’t easily be distilled into talking points, it often derives it’s best moments from wading into murky waters and staying there like with the character of Colandria Conoers, whose color contact wearing and haughty attitude having scenes are both delights and horrors. But more than just an astute examination of race in today’s world, this film really manages to capture the essence of young people today. There’s the endless desire to fit in where you think you belong, the pull of family issues while trying to get a college education, dating, and all of the other ramifications of being a young person in today’s world.
In terms of filmmaking, Justin Simien shows great promise. Too often directors of dialogue heavy pieces forget about the visuals, but Simien doesn’t have that problem. He’s got a wonderful eye for the frame and how to showcase his characters to maximize their potential. He’s a storyteller, pure and simple, and he delivers a wonderfully crafted movie. The only real problems I saw with the film was that the use of title cards gave this more of a web series feel than a feature film, but that’s a minor truffle when Simien is wielding his powers behind the camera to such great lengths.
Where this movie really takes off is in the acting. If you’re looking for the next set of Black acting royalty, look no further than this film. Tessa Thompson is a force to be reckoned as an actress and if anyone sees the film, I’m sure they’ll come away impressed as I was. In Samantha, she had a difficult part to play, that of the revolutionary anarchist spirit with the weight of the world on her shoulders. In order for the film to work, she had to carry the film, and she does, giving a three dimensional portrait of this girl. Her final monologue is just flawless. Matching her, but with a different kind of energy are Teyonah Parris as Colandrea and and Brandon P. Bell as Troy. Both actors represent members of the black community that may be trying way to hard to fit in with whites but neither actor diverts to stereotypes. Parris, in particular, has such a tough role in that we have to see both her emotional and physical dislike for her community. Bell’s Troy is under the constant pressure to be this golden boy, something many educated Africa-Americans are faced with, and Bell has such a control of his sensitive masculinity that even at his worst you still empathize with him. Tyler James Williams, of Everybody Hates Chris fame, was the one person I was maybe on the fence about when the tim started but he blew me away with his performance as Lionel. I couldn’t talk about the acting without mentioning some great work by Kyle Gallner as the villainous jerk Kurt, Justin Dobies as Gabe and Marque Richardson, both suitors for Samantha, and Keith Meyers as Mitch, who might have the most foolish (in a good way) joke in the whole movie.
All in all, Dear White People is a wonderful production that should find no issue gaining fans. With its great direction, acting and script, it’s one of the best films at Sundance this year.
Originally published at ScottFeinberg.com