Week #4--Challenging the Conventions of Hollywood Cinema

In Ousmane Sembene’s Black Girl, as important as it is to identify the oppressive treatment Diouana received from the family she served in a domestic setting, it is also important to identify the relationships that this particular situation in the narrative has with both the colonial situation between Africa and Europe. Diouana’s suicide resulted from her disillusionment with Western perceptions of beauty and leisure, as well as how naïve and oblivious she was to how she was perceived by the family she worked for. This can be directly paralleled to the situation that Sembene and other filmmakers throughout Africa had faced. Last week’s class I had mentioned that Sembene was not able to screen this or any of his films in Senegal for many years, largely because European colonialism had a stranglehold on all resources regarding production (the making of the film), distribution (circulation of the film), and exhibition (screening of the film) that denied these filmmakers complete access. Government propaganda filmmaking was the only opportunity these filmmakers could be part of the industry, as their original projects would not be supported by organization responsible for enabling access to such resources. This rejection would inspire African filmmakers to unify and establish organizations (i.e. FEPACI) and film festivals (i.e. FESPACO) so that they would not only challenge these gatekeepers, but also establish film-related events that they could control.

Also mentioned last week were the different approaches to African filmmaking: semi-documentary (films that depict and denounce European colonialism); didactic-fictional (narratives that reflect African moral tales that focus on good and evil); and research (films that are more analytical about the subject matter). This is something to keep in mind as we transition from African films of the early ‘60s to African-American films of the early ‘70s. I’m sure that you observed that there was roughly a thirty-year difference between when Black Girl was released (1965) and when the previous film we saw, Murder in Harlem (1935), was initially screened. As you can recall from Classified X, Melvin Van Peebles mentioned that after the ‘40s, there went a good two decades where not a single film was released directed by an African-American. As more African-Americans took the reins behind the camera, it was during a moment in which there was correspondence amongst people throughout the African Diaspora. Many people of African descent throughout the world were challenging the governmental establishment and were using forceful action to fight against systems of privilege that unjustifiably subjugated these populations. One level of correspondence amongst people of African descent was through artistic expression, particularly through music, literature and film. It is important to consider throughout the semester how African-American filmmakers and others throughout the Diaspora approach their projects in a similar fashion as African filmmakers regarding the three approaches to filmmaking they utilized.

Reflecting on the activities of African filmmakers to control their own production, distribution and exhibition, it is important to consider how African-American filmmakers faced similar challenges and utilized similar strategies and objectives. This week, we will discuss how, at least regarding production, African-Americans used film as a tool to magnify their situations that had not been shown in commercial film. During the ‘60s, Hollywood had experienced a financial slump because studio executives failed repeatedly to effectively respond to challenges brought upon by television, which not only had shown classic films, but had also become a reliable source to learn what turmoil the country was facing at the time. Slowly realizing that churning out westerns, musicals, and other irrelevant genre films would not make Hollywood competitive, studios began to slowly respond to the counterculture, primarily by lifting what had once been stringent censorship regarding language and the depiction of violence and sexuality. Films that reflected the American counterculture of the late ‘60s (i.e. Bonnie and Clyde, Easy Rider, The Wild Bunch) would become a reliable economic boost for the movie industry.

Another reliable source was what would become known as “Black Exploitation” (or blaxploitation) films. The formula for many of these films is often attributed to the film Sweet Sweetback’s Baaadasssss Song, Melvin Van Peebles’ project about a sex laborer who transforms from his passive state to becoming someone who becomes deeply concerned about his community and is not hesitant to fight on its behalf. Along with its depiction of sex and violence, Sweetback is also known for reflecting the social, cultural, and political sentiments of Black communities throughout the ‘60s through both its form (i.e. its visual display and approach to editing) and content (i.e. what certain characters represent). As we watch an excerpt from Sweetback, think of why Van Peebles’ approach to form and content would be considered as radical, and why others would consider it (particularly the content) to be exploitative. Think of how the film itself is a departure from a film like Murder in Harlem. As we transition to the documentary Baadassss Cinema, we learn more about the blaxploitation era, directly from the filmmakers and performers. Pay close attention to what marked the transition from a film like Sweetback to something like Shaft. Also, consider why Hollywood produced so many of these films (and why they would ultimately abandon them afterwards), and why they received so much criticism from Black social organizations. Also, why would it be considered a double-edged sword for Black actors to take upon these roles? As you read the offerings from Yearwood (from a conference panel amongst Black filmmakers and critics in 1980) and Massood, think of the issues Black filmmakers raise amongst themselves regarding how to effectively reach a Black audience, as well as what an urban landscape meant for offering a different portrayal of Blacks onscreen.