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African American Studies 188A Blog Post #6

Recently in class we viewed the film titled The Abandon, and personally I thought that it was in a good way very different to the other films shown in class. This film did not have the production of a hollywood film, instead it is a short horror film which probably had minimal resources. As a result, the film had a sort of amateur look to it but this look also made me more immersed in the film. It made it seem as if the audience was also in the film and the events of the film seemed to come out of the screen for me personally. The film focuses on a group of black males who go on a trip to the woods. The horror aspect of the film comes into play on their drive to the woods when everyone is blinded by a bright light that surrounded their vehicle. They first ignored the light thinking it was nothing, but they all soon came to realize that something was not right. This portion of the film was very interesting to me as it seemed very weird. The audience can tell that there is some tension between the friends, but at the same time there was also a sense of awkwardness going around. Once they make it to the site, they look for their friend Jeff. They find him and assume he is dead, but he opens his mouth and his tongue and all his teeth are missing. This leads to them all freaking out and basically each friend tried to fend for themselves as it became every man for themselves. Through this we are introduced to some beef between the friends, and it in a way explains the tension from the beginning of the film. At the end of the film we see Jeff who was killed by the monster still lying on the floor, but then his eyes shoot open and are blacked out basically implying that the monster is manifested in Jeff.

Like I have previously mentioned, the film was different to what is normally shown in class and because of that I was more drawn to it. Although one might assume that the camera work is shaky and unprofessional, I think it makes the film seem more scary and it makes it feel more intense as if you were in the woods with the friend group. Another thing I noticed about this film is that it was an all black cast, but there was no political message behind it. Despite all the good aspects I have mentioned about the film, the only criticism I have is that the plot was not the best. From the tension between the friends to the monster hunting them down, it seemed like there was a lot going on and it in a way made the film a little too much.

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African American Studies 188A Blog Post #5

For this week's blog post I will be discussing the film Beloved and the fact that it is so creepy. The film itself did not get much love when it first came out, as it basically flopped at the box office. This meant that at the time it became much harder for writers to pitch Black Horror films. But recently there has been a surge in the love for the film and the amazing, but creepy, story it contains. The film is based on Toni Morrison’s novel, which makes the film based on a true story. The main character of the film is Sethe, played by Oprah Winfrey, who is a former slave during the American Civil War who is being haunted. The film has many characters who play an important role, because they each have their own plot line and they help further advance the story of the film. 

The film starts off slowly, but it really starts to get interesting once Paul D. moves in with Sethe. Shortly after he moves in, we are introduced to a strange girl who goes by the name Beloved. Beloved is welcomed into their home, but we later find out that she is one of Sethe’s late daughters who is reincarnated. What happened was that Sethe killed one of her two daughters when they were just a baby in order to protect her from slavery. This part of the film was very grotesque and gruesome, and it made it really hard to watch. Seeing the daughter held against her mom all bloody was very disturbing. This shows the length that Sethe would go through in order to protect her daughters from the hardships of slavery. Sadly, the daughter she managed to kill comes back to haunt her. Another aspect of the film that I found creepy was that it is a very detailed film. From the bloody babies, to the scars left on Sethe’s back from the lashings she got from being a slave, the film does a great job at making the viewer feel as if those events are happening right in front of them. 

Once Sethe finds out who Beloved really is, she explains to her why she killed her and that she did it out of love. Sethe ends up quitting her job and spending time with Beloved while neglecting her other daughter Denver. The appearance of Beloved brings back all the memories of Sethe’s past and how she used to be a slave. She basically becomes a slave again, but this time to the memories that haunt her past. Once Beloved leaves, Sethe is finally able to resume with her life once again.

The film does a great job with the imagery while also depicting the story of a person who was once a slave, but is now trying to go on with her life. The audience is able to understand the hardships that Sethe went through, and the fact that she is not able to let go of those memories that haunt her past. Although she was physically free from the hardships of slavery, she was still a slave to those memories that stayed with her.

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African American Studies 188A Blog Post #4

For this week's blog assignment I chose to discuss the film Night of the Living Dead which is directed by George A. Romero. The plot behind the film is in a sense very simple, but despite this it addresses some very interesting and controversial topics for the time it was produced. One of the main characters, Ben, is played by Duane Jones who is an African American. His role through the film was to basically save Barbara who was a white woman. At the beginning of the film, the two of them were in the house alone which raised many concerns from the audience's point of view. The reason why for this is because the film came out in 1968, which coincided with the civil rights movements that had been very prevalent in America at the time. Although there are many different characters that appear in the house throughout the film, I have chosen to mainly focus on the relationship between Ben and Barbara

Having an African American take care and watch over a white woman was very rare for the film world at the time. So when Ben was locked in the house with Barbara, it for sure popped up in the audience’s mind as to what this Black man is going to do to this poor white woman. Romero does a great job of being able to portray Ben in a good light, and simple make him the hero in the film and not the sacrificial Negro that was so prevalent at the time. The idea of a sacrificial Negro can in a way be seen in the film The Shining where they kill off Scatman Crothers once he becomes non essential. I remember professor Due discussing in class that this was not the case in the book, because he was not killed off in the book. So being able to see Ben thrive as a main character and even develop as a character and save the day was very rare at the time. 

As time went on, having an African American character in a film was not a rare sight to see, in a way Ben’s role paved a path for the future of African American actors. For example, in Blackula we once again see a lead character who is African American. Although both Blackula and Night of the Living Dead have different plots, they both emphasize the ability of African American actors which allowed them to get more roles in future films where they are not casted as someone who is a sidekick or sacrificial Negro. With these films which I have just discussed, the Black Horror genre was able to expand and gain more traction and popularity.

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African American Studies 188A Blog Post #3

The topic of voodoo can in a way be seen in the film Tales from the Hood, because Mr. Simms is continuing the legacy of those who are deceased in the funeral parlor. The idea behind voodoo is that there is a horror aspect, but the reality becomes that it is mainly used as a form of communication. It is just that western influence has turned it into a scary practice, which has affected the view on it.

Continuing with the theme of Black Horror, I watched the film Tales from the Hood directed by Rusty Cundieff. The main plot behind the film is that three drug dealers named Stack, Ball, and Bulldog come to this funeral parlor to purchase drugs. Once they get there, they meet Mr. Simms who had a sort of creepy aura to him which was displayed throughout the film. Mr. Simms takes them on a tour through the parlor and starts showing them some of the deceased. This leads to him telling stories about a few of them. In specific, he tells four stories throughout the film, and each one is focused on one of the deceased people in the parlor. 

The main draw to this film is that it is told from the perspective of an African American. Simply put, each of the stories told by Mr. Simms portray themes of racism which were prevalent at the time, and these themes can also be seen in today’s society as well. Rusty Cundieff does an amazing job at being able to portray these themes, while also producing a film that can fall under the genre of Black Horror. One might think that the only purpose behind a horror film is to scare, but Cundieff is able to teach the audience and expose them to the society around them. 

Black Horror is not just a genre for the arts, it can also be seen in various other places such as voodoo. Voodoo originated from the country of Haiti, and its rise in popularity was due to the fact that the slaves at the time had no control over their lives. This allowed voodoo to in a sense fill a hole in their lives, and at the same time give them back a sense of control. Both Professor Due and my TA Keanu Thompson explained that when the Haitians were taken away for slavery, the families of those taken away turned to voodoo so that they could constantly remain in contact with them. Before taking this course, the first thought that came to my mind when hearing the word voodoo was dolls. The truth is there is much more to it, and it can in fact be used as a form of prayer for some.

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African American Studies 188A Blog Post #2

In the class discussion on Tuesday January 28th, Professor Due along with various students input their own thoughts and ideas on both works. For example, one student brought up the point behind the resemblance of the rabbits in the film Us. They explained that the rabbits could represent rebirth since they are known for reproducing at such fast rates. This ties into the film, because just like the rabbits want to start a new life so do the tethered who want to start a new life on the surface. There are many more examples of objects being used to represent the difference between those on the surface and the tethered. I distinctly remember professor due explaining the significance behind the candied apple in the beginning of the film when young Adelaide is roaming the beach. Professor Due said that the reason why this is included is because those on the surface take their food for granted, which is why we see Adelaide drop the apple like it was nothing. On the other hand the tethered barely have any food, and being able to eat a candied apple would be a privilege.

This past week of class has been a very interesting one to say the least. We discussed Jordan Peele’s film Us, and we also read and discussed Professor Due’s book The Good House. Both works have a sort of similarity in the sense that they use the haunted house theme. In the case of Us, the family doesn’t really live in a haunted house but they are instead haunted in their own house by their doppelgangers. In The Good House Angela is being haunted when she goes and visits her dead grandmother’s house in California. Both works play off the thrill and horror of being haunted in a house that you are familiar with.

Another way that the two works are similar is that they both take place, or have scenes that take place, in the 20th century. In the case of Professor Due’s book, Angela and her family are the only black family that live in their city in the 1920’s. In Us, the film starts off with young Adelaide being at the beach in the 1980’s. Adelaide’s background is similar to that of Angela’s, despite the 60 year difference. The reason for this is because Adelaide was also in a similar situation to that of Angela due to the fact that Santa Cruz is a predominantly white city. The fact that Adelaide’s family was considered upper class was very rare for the time it took place. 

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African American Studies 188A Blog Post #1

Starting with the first day of Professor Due’s class on January 7th, she started the class with discussing the film Get Out. I personally have never seen the film, but I had heard so much about it. As the class went on I learned so much more about the genre of Black Horror in general, and the film Get Out in specific. Jordan Peele is the director of the film, and it was also the first ever film he directed which made it his debut. 

Before the first day of class, I never knew that there was a Black Horror genre in the film industry. I have always been used to the mainstream idea of horror, and the general idea behind it. Professor Due raised a good point as to why there needs to be a Black Horror genre, instead of just a Horror genre. The reason behind it is that in most Horror films, the Black person always becomes the first one to die. They are always the first ones to go investigate the sound that they hear orr go towards to the scary things in the film. This is the exact opposite of what any sensible person would do. Instead of going to investigate, they would instead just run away. 

In the film Get Out we are shown a scene known as the Sunken Place. In this, Chris is taken to a place known as the Sunken Place and he basically loses control. It makes it seem like Chris is trapped behind bars himself, and it sort of alludes to the fact that Blacks are at a disadvantage when it comes to the justice system. As a result, many of them are behind bars where they have no control over their lives and instead they have to follow the rules that others enforce on them without any free will. Get Out does a great job of going against the traditional tropes that are seen in horror films, and instead creates a new genre where African Americans are in a way not the disposable character in the film that always dies off quick. 

Jordan Peele was able to create an original screenplay of Black Horror, where the main character of the film is black and is not subjected to the traditional tropes that we are used to seeing in other horror films. Due to this, he was able to win the award for original screenplay which allowed him to create more films in the future such as Us which just recently came out and is also another type of Black Horror film. The film Us did not win any awards, but it is still a great film for the horror genre.