In Manthia Daiwara article, he writes about how blacks are portrayed in Hollywood films. He writes about how in the movie The Birth of Nation there is “five minute sequence that involves the pursuit of a young girl by a black man, often referred as the Gus chase sequence” (893). He goes on to explain how Gus represents “absolute evil” while the girl “embody absolute good.” He also goes on the write that Gus represents “danger and chaos,” that he is an “alien” that one needs protection from. Another movie he talks about is 48 hours (1982) with Eddie Murphy and Nick Nolte. In 48 hours Murphy character is a convict enlisted by the police to help track down two fellow prisoners who have escaped. Daiwara writes “Murphy’s persona invokes the image of a criminalized black male” (895). In the movie Nolte’s character is “tough, persevering, whereas Murphy is inconsistent swaying between good and evil” (895). Here’s the trailer for those who never seen it before.
These movies are just some examples of how Hollywood portrays blacks on film. It still happens today, with movies such as Training Day, where Denzel Washington plays the corrupt cop and Ethan Hawks plays the good cop. As a spectator I just look at is Hollywood using stereotypes of society and putting it on film. In the year 2007 do we still have to the problem of black spectators identifying with characters in Hollywood? And not feeling that every character that is black is viewed as threatening or “evil.” As a white spectator I can see why Diawara felt the way he did back in 1988, but I feel that we are passed the stage that Hollywood only views back in such negative ways. My all time favorite actor is Denzel Washington, not just because of his amazing performance in Training Day but other movies like Philadelphia, Remember the Titans, John Q, just to name a few. I hope now that we are not living in a society where “Hollywood films are made less threatening to whites either by white domestication of black customs and culture- a process of deracination and isolation-or by stories in which blacks are depicted playing by the rules of white society and losing” (895). Are we still faced with this issue in Hollywood? And if so how can it be fixed?
Chris Eckert
October 9, 2007 at 4:27 pm
As much as we like to avoid it, I feel as though black stereotypes and the treatment that blacks recieve through film that Diawara writes of, is still very present. Films are still being made that portray black people in a negative light, or a stereotypical one at that. I say this because if these stereotypes didn’t still exist, then I don’t feel as though we would be questioning certain movies (for instance as another thread starter brought up, the movie Hustle and Flow). Hollywood has certain character players who are meant to play certain types of people, certain stereotypes. The stereotype of uneducated black people from the ghetto is still very much alive, whether its being portrayed or not. This sounds confusing, but let me clarify. Today in class we watched a segment of Girlfriends, depicting both educated, successful black women, as well as their backgrounds of their culture which we noticed through their use of slang. They are portraying successful, educated women, yet we notice the use of slang, and we notice their backgrounds because those stereotypes are still there. I am not sure if blacks are still “losing” in this depiction since it is the portrayal of success overall, yet there is still an aftereffect of the past, which we have yet to rid of in television and film.
October 11, 2007 at 2:14 pm
I agree that as much as we try to say that black stereotypes in movies are a thing of the past, they still exist. Many films that have both whites and African Americans only show one group of people as being the good guy, and one being the bad guy, and in a good amount of those films, the white person is the “good guy”. This happens with other races as well. For some reason some movies are created with story lines that make people believe that most of the crimes that are commited, are done by people who are not white. This is obviously not the case. If by chance there is a movie where the African American is not the “bad guy”, then the movie usually consists of mostly African Americans, and there arent many white people present. Another movie where this stereotype is shown is the movie Save the Last Dance. The white female in this movie is portrayed as an innocent, ballet dancer who was just forced to move in with her father, who lives in predominantly black town. Julia Stiles, who plays one of the only white charecters becomes freinds with an African American female, Chenille. Chenille is a single mother still in high school who has a very difficult life, while Stile’s chrarecter’s biggest problem is whether or not she can dance anymore. I think this shows how black and white people, females in particular, can be displayed in movies.
October 11, 2007 at 5:47 pm
Even though Diawia’s wrote this article in 1988, there still are elements in movies that portray black culture, society, and people as “evil” or “wrong”. Just like all the somewhat dated articles that we have been reading, the problem still seems to exist but is not as much of a problem. I will admit that there are still some movies that come out today that do have the elements Diawia talks about, but to me at least, it doesn’t seem like there is such a big problem as there was a century ago. One of my classic favorites is the Sister Act movies with Whoppi Goldberg, if you haven’t seen the movies, rent them or find them on tv. But the first one is a more clear example of this idea that Diawia is talking about with Whoppi’s character being a Las Vegas lounge singer who get placed into a local convent to hid from her mopster boyfriend. It shows the clash of her culture versus a very strict other culture. And the 2nd movie, brings in the element of inner city children and how they function in society.
~Danny Taylor
October 11, 2007 at 8:01 pm
I think that even though Diawia’s article is right about the stereo types of African Americans and the usage of them in earlier movies, there have been great strives towards equality. Actors such as Denzel Washington Hallie Berry, Don Cheadal Forest Whitaker and Morgan Freeman are just a few of the many examples of the artist who are able to break past the stereotypes and are not hired to portray the ‘black role’ . Instead through their degree of acting and the diverse roles audiences are more accepting to African Americans being in the lead for all types of movies. Examples of this include The Things We Lost in the Fire, The Shawshank Redemption and The Pelican Brief. In these movies and many more the actors are not picked for their race and for their acting ability and their role transcends any color of skin. That is not to say though that there are not still examples of Minority artist, not just African Americans playing the secondary role. acting ability instead of skin color
Jess Smith
October 11, 2007 at 9:58 pm
In class we saw a clip of Girlfriends which shows us a bit of a show which is supposed to be above all the racist stereotypes in movies and television, as well as showing us a realistic vision of modern life within an African American group of friends. These women are educated *Lynne (the hippie bohemian character) has multiple college degrees* and successful. Toni is a real estate agent, Joan is a junior partner at a prestigious lawfirm, and even Maya who is supposed to be the uneducated “ghetto” character has written a successful book that is picked up by a major publisher. Despite all these things however, we noticed in class that we only laughed when the very stereotypical ‘ethnic’ lines are delivered. I think, that it reflects the idea in the Diaware piece. The white spectator is afraid to see these African Americans (and Women, at that) who are successful on white society’s terms. This uneasiness however, is easily eradicated when the audience can see that no matter how successful they are and how well they integrate into ‘white’ society, it’s okay, because really they’re just ‘ghetto’ girls on the inside who pose no threat to us, because they will always just be those poor black girls with no education and no place in the white world.
October 11, 2007 at 11:30 pm
Stereotypes of African Americans in the movies and TV still exist today. Even if they play lead roles or supporting roles, there is aways some kind of stereotype attached to the character. Agreeing with Cindy above, when viewing any TV show with both black and white characters, even if the blacks are more successful, they will always draw a laugh or a response from the audience by saying something in slang or Ebonics or with a black accent or gesture. I think there has to me a mix of white wit and black humor to get us interested in whatever the topic is that we are watching. Even though in this day and age, i would hope we are over racism and discrimination, there is still something that pulls us towards seeing black weakness.
Marina Fishbeyn
October 12, 2007 at 12:24 am
i feel that we are still faced with this poblem Daiwara talks about in the article. However, i do feel it has decreased a lot. Yes, there are the typical stereotypical movies and shows such as what other bloggers have mentioned. These movies do portray the black man as the bad guy or less educated while the white man is strong, smart, and usually the hero. Although this is true there are some movies that show the opposite. Such as Remember the Titans starring Denzel Washington. This movie is about a small southern town high school in the 50s coming together as black and white. The premise is based ont he football team and how essentially they strive and become great players working with one another. In this movie blacks are shown as equals in the end and just as strong. Even more so Denzel washington plays the head coach and he becomes the hero on top when the Titans win the championships. So even though there are still always going to be those stereotypical shows and movies, there are more choices of what and how blacks are perceived. Its all in the matter of your personal taste and if you have risen above these stereotypes and are comfortable watching a successful black man or woman.
..Allison Tilbrook..
October 12, 2007 at 12:48 am
I think that this problem has decreased immensely since the time of the Diawara article. I feel that now a days movies and tv are cast much more fairly and the characters are not written with stereotypes in mind. When I think of famous, successful tv and movie stars, just as many African Americans come to mind as white people. Also, there are many more shows and movies geared toward a black audience in recent times. Many people have made mention of Denzel Washington. Washington has played some excellent roles in excellent movies and is a favorite of people of all races. I think when stereotypical roles are written in the present time they are usually satirical or comical roles that are meant to come off in that way to mock these stereotypes. So although it may happen every once in awhile, I feel that this problem is barely evident in today’s tv and film industry.
Erin Murphy
October 12, 2007 at 9:27 am
I agree with the statement that blacks are still being portrayed in stereotypical ways that Diawara writes about. Although we do not have films like birth of a nation anymore that was very upfront about portraying black African Americans in a very negative way. We tend to see more embedded stereotypes in film and television. But I would like to also point out that the entertainment business runs of stereotypical characters. Just as Comedia Del Arte characters, that have stock characters that act a certain way, we in modern types have our own. Like in romance movies, action movies, even most drama. Reverting back to an old post about movies and spectacle, were we discussed why Hollywood pumps out these visually stimulating movies. Well its that same with stereotypes in these movies, you have a soldier that hardcore but has a soft side, a kid that going to save the world, a black man that dies. It’s a shame but like I said before the entertainment industry has just like in renaissance times Comedia Del Arte stock characters.