★★★○○○○○○○ [ 3/10 ]
I have seen many movies (over 1200 to be exact) but this is easily one of the most stereotypical movies I've ever seen. The protagonist happens to be a morbidly obese dark skinned woman that loves stealing fried chicken (I kid you not). She's also illiterate and engages in an incestuous relationship with her father who ends up knocking her up with two kids, one of which has the Down Syndrome. Her mother is extremely abusive towards her (both mentally and physically) and her disabled child. All she cares about is her welfare check... go figure. Throughout the whole movie I felt like I was watching one of Tommy Sotomayor's Youtube videos (they usually address black stereotypes in the most satirical fashion). To top it all off the only "smart" characters were light skinned (the teacher and Dr. Weiss), all of the dark skinned characters were for lack of a better word one-dimensional and dull. Keep in mind that the author of the book, which this movie is ultimately based on, is black herself.
[The next part contains minor spoilers]
I really don't know why so many people tend to think that this movie is "inspirational" or "empowering". As someone who's actually watched the movie I can assure you it's neither. The movie ends with the protagonist finding out that she contracted AIDS from her father. What an inspiration...
On a personal side note I'd like to criticize the sloppy and unprofessional camera work at the end of the movie. During the entire last conversation with Dr. Weiss the camera was shaky (not to mention the completely random and uncalled for instances where the cameraman kept zooming in and out of the picture). If you're not used to it you might get motion sickness. No Joke. I almost threw my glass at the TV while simultaneously yelling "get a steadicam, Noob!!!". It took some serious anger management to maintain my equanimity throughout that scene. So, beware.
The acting was top-notch but the story was rather weak/predictable.
Final verdict: wouldn't recommend (it's difficult/uncomfortable to watch with all the rape and horrible stuff in it. The book isn't any better BTW, I read it. If anything it's slightly worse.)
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0929632/
Ontology: #movie #review #GaboureySidibe #africanamerican #drama #book #adaptation #shocking #controversial