myDylarama

Top 5 on Netflix - The Black Middle Classes

Abla Kandalaft, Coco Green — 2020-07-09T13:15:15Z

Mydy's second podcast! It's the second part Secorro's look at the Netflix Black Lives Matter collection and associated films. We're still tinkering with tech and format. Other episodes will feature discussions with more back and forth, as well as interviews and guest spots. As always, comments welcome!

This week, from five films on Netflix, (1) Self-Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker (2020); (2) Strong Island (2017); (3) Skin (2019); (4) I Am Not Your Negro (2016); and (5) Black Privilege (2019) emerges the theme of the ‘Black Middle Classes.' While they all hit the mark for entertainment value, some fall short in misrepresenting a fantasy of black life that is more based-on-aspirational than matter-of-fact; and the documentaries provide insights on the functions, politics, and practices of black middle classes.

In light of the solidarity expressed by the Black Lives Matter movement - and other protesters and campaigners - with Palestinians, our intro is about Palestinian films that shed light on the current issue of annexation. Abla talks about the London Palestine Film Festival collection, Mats Grorud's The Tower (available via Amazon Prime), Wassim Safadi's State of Siege (available on YouTube) and Mahdi Fleifel's A World Not Ours (also Amazon Prime). Get in touch if you want more info about any of these!

Beauty Is...

Coco Green — 2014-08-23T16:43:34Z

Beauty Is is a 2-hour documentary about the attitudes and opinions of Black British women and men on the meaning of Black beauty. For women. The film argues that complex processes of internalised racism and alienation have arisen as a result of the media, cosmetic, health and fashion industries which idolise the white Barbie doll and are intent on helping Black women to become more like her. Beauty Is sets about unpacking the struggles for Black women that result from the social pressures to straighten their hair and lighten their skin and the various issues around self-worth, self-hate, self-harm and self-actualisation that result.

When comparing the documentary Beauty Is to Good Hair, in which Chris Rock begins with the premise that black women want a certain kind of hair (i.e., straight, long and easily attached weaves), and examines the industries that surround this desire, the shortcoming of Beauty Is becomes clear— it possesses no single argument, no single focus. Director Toyin Agbetu clearly has extensive knowledge about colourism throughout the African diaspora, so it was surprising and more than a little disappointing not to hear more analysis from activists and academics on colourism in the UK in 2014. The problem is that the film attempts to be relevant to all Black people, everywhere, all the time; but I'm not sure it should be. The Black British voice is relatively silenced—even in London in which the US Civil Rights Movement is talked to death during the month of October—so a UK context is not only refreshing, but absolutely necessary.

Whilst the film was clever, insightful and accessible to a diverse audience, I wanted the concept of beauty to move beyond the hair, skin and bodies of Black girls and women. Transwomen were excluded entirely as was anyone speaking specifically to Black representation, desire and objectification in the LGBT communities. The Black men in the film were opinionated about their likes and dislikes when mating and dating, but did not discuss how this was shaped by their own experiences in their families or engagement with media (film, TV, porn, etc.). The film was at its best when people shared stories that revealed racially coded attitudes or contradictions in behaviour. Despite the commentary, the film did not offer any solutions beyond individual responsibility or highlight the psycho-social constructions of Black identity. After all, if collectively these Black British women have similar stories, what can be said about womanhood and patriarchy generally? How is this embodied and performed when women are in the public and private spheres? What are the expressions of resistance beyond unprocessed hair and unbleached skin?

Toyin Agbetu's talent for identifying intelligent women who are fearless in sharing their pain, disappointment and joy in their paths toward self-acceptance is enlightening for the viewer. However the scattered issues and fictional vignettes took away from their voices which spoke volumes on their own. Searching for the meaning of Black beauty, learning to love what's in the mirror when it is not reflected in dominant narratives of beauty and setting out on an uncharted path all came from the hearts of the women in the film. Anyone remotely interested in these topics would be both educated and entertained, but a 60-minute documentary focusing on straight, gay and trans women, of their mothers, their daughters and their stories would have done more to move the Black beauty conversation forward.

Dir: Toyin Agbetu, 2014

Beauty Is is screening at The Nub, London Saturday 6th September 7pm.

More details about the film, screenings and the campaign:
http://www.ligali.org/beautyis/screeningsdvd.html

'Memphis' and '20 Feet From Stardom'

Coco Green — 2014-06-28T09:12:36Z

'American Idol' owes me, big time. Whilst they didn't clip my wings during an audition by highlighting my average singing talent, their on-screen auditions showcasing amazing, (allegedly) undiscovered vocal talent has served to divert my attention from the lives of amazing, discovered vocal talent that still has not 'made it'. '20 Feet from Stardom' is a documentary profiling background singers, covering the last 50 years and reminding us that talent is one thing many aspiring singers are not short on. As a companion film 'Memphis' offers a fictional account of a talent who made it but is unable to maintain the dual identity of successful singer and creative artist. Willis Earl Beal, a singer with a powerful sound and spirit that 'made it' is shown to have lost the creative impulse, reminding us that the course of stardom and success is rarely one of pure ascension. prompting questions about the effects of fame and success on talent. Willis doesn't sing the blues, he is the blues.

'20 Feet from Stardom' changes our frame of reference for the ingredients which we assume create a superstar. We want to believe it's about talent, hard work, creative drive, hunger for fame, musical ability and maybe a bit of luck, to fulfil our need for whimsy, but we are forced to face Black (and one Latina) women with all these characteristics and more who either remain in the background boosting the careers of others by singing hooks, or who have abandoned their dreams of stardom. While there are two standouts that beat the odds (Darlene Love and Judith Hill), these stories reflect the tensions between talent, artistry and the marketplace. The fates of these background singers are a powerful critique of an industry which is happy to use African-American, Baptist church gospel sounds for profit, but is less happy to promote this commodity when it cannot be neatly packaged for white audiences.

I argue that 'Memphis' partners well with this '20 Feet...' because the secondary message about the magic of music in '20 Feet' is primary in 'Memphis' which is all about the creative process, what that means for a vocalist and why music is as much an art as the story of the artist (when done well, anyway). Together the films present the fates and struggles of immensely talented vocalists that leaves us wondering what allows some people to make it and not others? Is it luck, magic or the marketplace? Or do 'true artists' not even want to ask or answer these questions?

Memphis, Dir: Tim Sutton, 2013
20 Feet from Stardom, Dir: Morgan Neville, 2013