Swinging back around to catch up to this film. I remember first hearing about it and being excited for the cast, but the stills and trailers that were released didn’t hold my interest quite as well. Having now seen the film, I find it to be a flawed but interesting movie that hangs on its strong lead performances.
One day while shopping downtown, Irene runs into Clare, an old friend from school. She’s shocked to discover that Clare has been passing as white, and after a short but precarious meeting with Clare’s casually-bigoted husbands, Irene tries to put the incident behind her. But Clare isn’t finished with Irene yet. When her husband goes away on business, Clare finds herself drawn to Irene’s life in Harlem, the world and culture she left behind when she crossed over.
I’ve always liked Rebecca Hall as an actress (all my love to Parade’s End,) so it’s neat to see her make her writing and directing debut with this feature. The direction is moody and stylish, and choice to film in black-and-white lends to the sense of atmosphere while also helping along the notion of Clare passing. The screenplay, based on a novel written in 1929, takes its time, letting scenes unfold slowly with charged hints of meaning.
Personally, I feel like the film succeeds better on thematic levels than as a narrative. It features a loose-flowing storyline in which it sometimes takes a while for things to happen, and there are moments where the plot is just a bit too understated for my tastes. But I enjoy the exploration of Black identity for these two mixed women in the early part of the 20th century. On the face of it, it seems ludicrous for Clare to risk exposure by continually coming to Harlem to spend time with Irene, and her pronouncement that she envies Irene’s “freedom” feels woefully naïve. But within the context of the story, it makes complete sense for Clare to look at Irene’s comfortable, well-to-do life and realize that she basically achieved everything Clare wanted without having to pass as white. At the same time, Irene chastises Clare for her reckless actions, and not just for her own sake—Clare has a daughter, and if word got out that she was actually Black, it would upend her daughter’s life as well.
The film leans heavily on its talented cast. Tessa Thompson gives a fine still-waters-run-deep performance as Irene, who’s outwardly unflappable even as she’s pricked inside by doubts and concerns. Meanwhile, as Clare, Ruth Negga is by turns a flirt, a wretch, a hungry child standing outside in the cold, the life of the party, and an underlying presence of foreboding. The two play fantastically off of each other, charging the quieter scenes with a simmering energy. They’re joined by the always-good André Holland as Irene’s husband and a broad-but-effective Alexander Skarsgård as Clare’s.
Warnings
Strong thematic elements, language (including racial slurs,) smoking/drinking, sensuality, and brief violence.
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