Dear White People (Simien)

[dreamdead]

http://killerboombox.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/dear-white-people-poster.jpg

[dreamdead]

This was pretty good. Definitely interesting to think about, and Simien's script is likely the best thing going for it. A few silly digressions or attempts to cross-cut, and Troy's narrative never becomes as interesting as it should be. Nonetheless, bravo for tackling sexual and racial identity in such a fascinating way.

I thought it was interesting that five of the six people I saw it with thought that Sam's first student film was far superior to her second one. Still wrestling with whether that sentiment is intentional, since Dear White People itself operates more as the second, crowd-affirming film of the two.

EDIT: Found this critical back-and-forth (http://bigmediavandal.blogspot.com/2014/10/black-man-talk-dear-white-people.html) entertaining.

[Irish]

Far & away one of the smartest comedies I've ever seen & definitely the smartest movie from 2014.

@dreamdead I thought the difference in the student films reflected Sam's arc perfectly. The first film is directed at white audiences, the second film is directed at black audiences. The second film is "better" because its voice is more authentic. It's more authentic because Sam is more comfortable in her identity.