There is no doubt there are thousands of other people who assumed Dear White People… was a fake movie when trailers of it debuted on social media outlets everywhere. Well over the weekend all accusations of it being a myth were dispelled and I was treated to one of the funniest and realest films I have seen in quite some time. The movie pretty much satirizes our country’s current racial climate. Keep in mind this is a rare feat. Rarely does a movie make you giggle all the while pointing out some really important issues plaguing our society.
The films is primarily told through the eyes of Sam White (Tessa Thompson). She prides herself on being Black, and shows that pride by informing (bluntly) how Whites should treat Blacks and how Blacks should act in situations where they might be seen in a negative/stereotypical light. Her pro-Black nature really intensifies as the only Black dorm on campus is threatened to diversify. Feeling the culture of the campus is changing by the ominous threat of integration she opts to run for head of household in order to fight the administration’s policies. Still her ambitions only serve to mask her own personal problems and insecurities in love and with her family.
Interestingly, the film also has a gay story line. “Everybody Hates Chris’s” Tyler James Williams is “Lionel Higgins,” a social outcast with a humongous Afro. Too Black to hang with the White students and too geeky to be accepted by the Black students he finds his niche working with the college newspaper. There, his own sexuality begins to blossom as he falls for one of his male colleagues. The story gets pretty deep and intimate–there are even kissing scenes!
Dear White People definitely is a film you have to see. Not just to laugh, but to open elevate and enlighten that “reality TV battle ravaged mind” of yours! The actors were nothing short of spectacular. Black and White, they came together to form a film I suspect will soon be labeled “The School Daze” of our times. Problems with racial identity and disparity and sexuality may always be issues many people find hard to discuss. Films like this are like “medicine mixed with sugar,” you get a lesson on the issue and a little laughter to heal your soul. If you have not seen this film, add it to your “To-Do” list and bring a friend! You can catch “Dear White People…” in select theaters nationwide!
