Dear White People (DVD REVIEW)
Dear
White People
DVD Review by Kam Williams
Ensemble Comedy Examines State of Race Relations in the Ivy League
The academics are tough
enough at Winchester
University, a mythical
Ivy League institution. It’s too bad that black students there also have to worry
about making themselves comfortable socially.
That’s precisely the predicament we find a quartet of African-American
undergrads facing at the point of departure of Dear White People, a
sophisticated social satire marking the directorial and scriptwriting debut of
Justin Simien. Earlier this year, the thought-provoking dramedy won the Jury
Award for Breakthrough Talent at the Sundance Film Festival.
The picture’s protagonists
are as different from each other as night and day. Lionel Higgins (Tyler James
Williams) is gay and uncomfortable around his own people because blacks teased
him the most about his sexuality back in high school. So, he lives in a
predominately-white dorm where he’s ended up being bullied anyway.
Then there’s Troy Fairbanks (Brandon P.
Bell), a legacy admission to Winchester
courtesy of his father (Dennis Haysbert), an alumnus and the current Dean of
Students. Troy’s
dating an equally-well connected white girl, Sofia Fletcher (Brittany Curran),
the daughter of the school’s President (Peter Syvertsen).
Political activist Samantha White
(Tessa Thompson) sits at the other extreme, being a militant sister who lives
in the all-black dorm ostensibly serving as a refuge for the “hopelessly
Afro-centric.” She also hosts a talk show on the college’s radio school’s
station, “Dear White People” where she indicts Caucasians about everything from
their racism to their sense of entitlement.
Finally, we have Coco
Conners (Teyonah Parris) who just wants to assimilate into mainstream American
culture. In fact, she’s more concerned with whether she might make the cut for
the reality-TV show conducting auditions on campus than with challenging the
status quo, ala rabble rouser Samantha.
So, the premise is set by
establishing that the four lead characters have little in common besides their
skin color. And the plot subsequently thickens when Pastiche, a student-run
humor publication, decides to throw a Halloween party with an “unleash your
inner-Negro” theme.
Now they share the prospect
of being stereotyped by white classmates cavorting around in blackface dressed as
pimps and gangstas, and as icons like President Obama and Aunt Jemima. En route
to a surprising resolution, director Simien pulls a couple of rabbits out of
his hat while lacing his dialogue with pithy lines (“Learn to modulate your
blackness up or down depending on the crowd and what you want from them.”) and touching
on a litany of hot button issues ranging from Affirmative Action to Tyler Perry.
A delightful dissection of
the Ivy League that stirs the pot in the way most folks mean when they issue a
call for a national discussion of race.
Excellent (4 stars)
Rated
R for profanity, ethnic and sexual preference slurs, sexuality and drug use
Running
time: 109 minutes
Distributor:
Lionsgate Home Entertainment
Blu-ray
Extras: Audio commentary with writer/director Justin Simien; The Making of Dear
White People; “Get Your Life” music video by Caught a Ghost; deleted scenes;
outtakes; Racism Insurance Skits; The More You Know about Black People (a PSA
Web Series); DVRS: Black Friends When You Need Them; LEAKED: Banned Winchester
U Diversity; and audio commentary with Justin
Simien, and cast members Tessa Thompson, Tyler James Williams, Teyonah Parris
and Brandon Bell.
To
see a trailer for Dear White People, visit:
To
order a copy of Dear White People on Blu-ray, visit:
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