African American Studies Discussion

Movies

American movies have portrayed African Americans in varied ways. Our documentary mentions the advent of blaxploitation films in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These films showed empowered African Americans, but did so by building upon the buck and Jezebel stereotypes. However, the African American hero is often so attractive that he gains the sexual attentions of at least one white woman during the course of the movie. Many scholars have written about the ways in which blaxploitation films played with and took apart stereotypes.

In white-hero dominated movies, the African American man is often the sidekick to the hero. A classic version of this role is seen in the right-wing gun fantasy Magnum Force (1973), which stars Clint Eastwood as the rogue cop antihero Dirty Harry Callahan. His partner on the San Francisco police force is the nonthreatening black man Early Smith (played by Felton Perry). Dirty Harry and Smith aren't buddies, but they get along and respect each other. To show what a cool guy Harry is, the movie gives him an Asian girlfriend. When Smith is murdered by the bad guys, Dirty Harry not only grieves the loss, but is additionally motivated to find and destroy the bad guys, who are white cops angry at the United States they returned to after fighting in the Vietnam War. The film is a bit of an ideological mess, but the only important African American character has two important symbolic roles: to show that the white-hero character is not prejudiced, and to motivate the white hero to decimate the villains.

African American filmmaker Spike Lee has had a long and successful career as a director. Movies like Do the Right Thing (1989) portray the simmering racial tensions in New York City during the 1980s, and Malcolm X (1992) gave an African American director the opportunity to share the story of this pivotal and polarizing leader.

More light-hearted films, such as How Stella Got Her Groove Back (1998) and Tyler Perry's comedies (both the plays and movies) about Madea, have also explored social and cultural aspects of African American life. The ways in which Tyler Perry adopts and adapts black stereotypes encourages African American audiences to recognize their own and their culture's strengths, despite having been defined by whites for generations with some of those stereotypes.

To this day, we find that the media is still shocked when films about and starring African Americans do well at the box office and at awards shows. According to an article in TIME Magazine, "12 Years a SlaveWill be Taught in Schools," the teaching of Solomon Northup's book and the related movie will open discussion in a positive way about African American history and slavery. Ironically, another recent film about slavery, Steven Spielberg's Lincoln (2012), had few African American actors, focusing primarily on the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment. Few films about serious topics get made, however, because films need to appeal to international audiences to make enough money to offset the costs of producing and distributing them. Therefore, films with big explosions and superheroes battling it out—not films about the everyday lives of normal people or serious historical topics—get produced.

Nevertheless, there is a market for documentaries and thoughtful, well-made films. If economics and commerce drive film production, let's all support films that give truthful and/or thought-producing representations of aspects of our culture.

African Americans in Film

John Singleton's 1991 Boyz n the Hood portrayed many of the tensions young African Americans and their families were experiencing, especially with the advent of drug-related violence. Very few popular films show positive relationships between fathers and sons, and many people found the Laurence Fishburne character worthy of much discussion and analysis.

Conclusion

During the past 50 years, African American culture has moved into the mainstream not only through music, but also through fashion, television, and film, where black people have transitioned from subservient caricatures to powerful men and women who run hospitals, act as heroes, and manage scandals. Without a doubt, our cultural products should be more diverse and creative, welcoming the contributions of all kinds of individuals because the United States is a multicultural, multiracial nation, and becoming more so every year. Our popular culture should explore and celebrate that fact, not run from it!

After you complete the viewings and readings for this week, please go to the Week 6 Discussions area to answer questions about what you've learned.

References

Museum of Broadcast Communications (MBC). (2014). Roots. Retrieved November 17, 2014, from http://www.museum.tv/eotv/roots.htm

Museum of Broadcast Communications (MBC). (2014). The Cosby Show. Retrieved November 17, 2014, from http://www.museum.tv/eotv/cosbyshowt.htm