American Fiction is a fascinating movie that is both a lot more and a lot less than I was initially expecting. There are essentially two separate stories here, that while they do interact and influence each other, also feel distinct in a way where I feel they do not exactly complement/reflect each other as well as they could. The A plot is what the trailer heavily plays into, the idea of a black writer who plays into racial stereotypes to illustrate the absurdity of tokenization, only to then see himself become a bestseller. The B plot revolves around a surprisingly deep exploration of the same writer's personal relationships and ties to his family and close ones. The A plot brings the humor, with some excellent comedic moments, as well as thematic depth including some fairly open-ended but complex topics that left me thinking about the multitude of sides to the idea of identity and how it is reflected in media and literature. Despite feeling slightly open-ended, I feel the movie is a microcosm of the entire idea it is dissecting, and so I was okay with it leaving us feeling like there were no easy answers. The B plot, however, also feels like it never fully resolves some of the character arcs that were set up. And while I do understand the conceptual idea of there being no easy answers there either, I did feel a bit let down in that regard. Still, I was not expecting the character study aspect, and I found it a welcome surprise, even if I wish the A plot and it were more balanced (the B plot tends to dominate the movie in my opinion) and complementary. Sterling K. Brown's acting in particular deserves special attention because I found it incredible and honestly one of my favorites of 2023.
Review by RG9400VIP 5BlockedParent2024-01-30T02:36:01Z
American Fiction is a fascinating movie that is both a lot more and a lot less than I was initially expecting. There are essentially two separate stories here, that while they do interact and influence each other, also feel distinct in a way where I feel they do not exactly complement/reflect each other as well as they could. The A plot is what the trailer heavily plays into, the idea of a black writer who plays into racial stereotypes to illustrate the absurdity of tokenization, only to then see himself become a bestseller. The B plot revolves around a surprisingly deep exploration of the same writer's personal relationships and ties to his family and close ones. The A plot brings the humor, with some excellent comedic moments, as well as thematic depth including some fairly open-ended but complex topics that left me thinking about the multitude of sides to the idea of identity and how it is reflected in media and literature. Despite feeling slightly open-ended, I feel the movie is a microcosm of the entire idea it is dissecting, and so I was okay with it leaving us feeling like there were no easy answers. The B plot, however, also feels like it never fully resolves some of the character arcs that were set up. And while I do understand the conceptual idea of there being no easy answers there either, I did feel a bit let down in that regard. Still, I was not expecting the character study aspect, and I found it a welcome surprise, even if I wish the A plot and it were more balanced (the B plot tends to dominate the movie in my opinion) and complementary. Sterling K. Brown's acting in particular deserves special attention because I found it incredible and honestly one of my favorites of 2023.