Life Through the Lens: Think outside the box
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"People are more than their worst deed."
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Life in 1327 was no joke. Literally, jokes were illegal. Fifty percent of children died in adolescence and the other sixty-five percent were cruelly undereducated in mathematics. The most common trades were chicken whisperer and dirt artist.
The harshest bit of reality was the overreliance on pockets. No matter the task at hand, all they had (apart from their hands) were their poorly fashioned pockets. A few stones, sure. A potato, no problem. If a deal was done for 35 potatoes, though… those pockets be bulgin'! Sometimes, the primitive pocket could not suffice.
Then along came the Earl of Cardboard. His disdain for inadequate pocket space and his historically poor grip strength created a need for invention. What could hold a mass quantity of materials, be stored with ease, yet remain easy to transport? After the failure of a product called "Hollow Dog," which proved messy and quite stinky, the box was born. Humanity has never looked back!
Ever since that fateful day, boxes have made life easier.
Boxes contain. Boxes maintain. Boxes remain. A box has the ability to make that which is unmanageable quite manageable; it is almost magic! When labeled, a box makes quantifying and organizing a breeze. A box resists mess; it defies the outlier; it restricts and retains. A box can just be so darn cute, too!
Try being IN a box, though! It is suffocating in there! Once sealed, it is impossible to breath, to stretch. It removes all forms of expression and individuality. A box dehumanizes and devalues. A box removes choice and chance.
When in a box, you disappear. You become nothing but easily stored and easily marked.
Do not place people in boxes; people do not belong in boxes! Do not place groups of people in boxes; groups do not belong in boxes! No boxes for gender. No boxes for beliefs. No boxes for race or region. No boxes for age or station. No boxes!
Leave the boxes for rocks and potatoes.
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Thelonious "Monk" Ellison (Jeffrey Wright) is a talented black author. He is well received and loved… but only by the intellectual community. The average reader has very little in common with his style and would much rather read something fun and easy. Because writing cannot pay the bills, Monk teaches college courses but is underappreciated there, as well.
In a forced sabbatical, Monk returns to his hometown of Boston, a place he has avoided much of his adult-life. His mother is ailing from early onset Alzheimer's, his brother is in the middle of life-altering upheaval, his sister is steady but weary. While in town, Monk attends a literary seminar where he comes face to face with what the American consumer wants. What they need. What they pine for. White America can't get enough of the stereotypical Black experience. They want "real," "authentic," "unflinching." Frankly, they want poverty and drugs and violence.
As times get tougher, as money get tighter, Monk finds desperation forcing him to do something completely out of character. If people don't want his educated and enlightened persona, he's going to give them exactly what they want! On the spot, Monk creates the character Stagg R. Leigh, a wanted fugitive and streetwise thug, and writes his story: "My Pafology."
He sends it to his agent as a lark, as a therapeutic exercise in futility. There's no way American culture can be this shallow, he thought. They will see right through my ruse. Aaaaaaand it is an overnight success! It is a best-seller with a movie on the way! For the first time in his career, Monk has written something people want to read, but he is insulted at the interest! This isn't real Black culture; it is just careless cliché.
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Cord Jefferson is a first-time filmmaker?! How? In his debut, he produces a piece of immense creativity and maturity. Jefferson's script is as sharp as a blade and effortlessly funny. Jefferson's directing is stellar. It is powerful yet tender, emotional yet grounded. Writing and directing a satire is a monumental task, one bound to offend or obscure. The audience must be invited in on the joke and then constantly kept in tune. It is a work of supreme harmony. Cord Jefferson proves a masterful conductor!
The music of Laura Karpman is simplistic and elegant; the melodic piano pieces accentual the beauty inherent in so many moments. The cinematography of Cristina Dunlap is effective and attractive. The production design of Jonathan Guggenheim is, at times, tactile and transporting.
Jeffery Wright has been a Hollywood powerhouse for years, often relegated to support but always reliable. Finally, a meaty role to showcase this wonderful actor! Wright's performance is endlessly likable, heartfelt, and hilarious. He is tenaciously tender! Although an underdog, Wright winning Best Actor would be well-earned!
The rest of the cast shines, as well! Tracee Ellis Ross is infectious as Lisa Ellison; she captivates and captures with real charm. John Ortiz is great as Monk's agent Arthur. Erika Alexander is effortless as neighbor-turned-love-interest Coraline. Sterling K. Brown is astonishing as brother Cliff; his Oscar nomination is a testament to his rich and textured performance.
It is a movie that will leave you wondering, questioning, discussing, analyzing, reflecting...a lot of words ending in "ing"!
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REPORT CARD: "American Fiction."
Grade: A+.
Assessment: A film of intricacy and immediacy