What’s It About
It is Cord Jefferson’s hilarious directorial debut, which confronts our culture’s obsession with reducing people to outrageous stereotypes. Jeffrey Wright stars as Monk, a frustrated novelist who’s fed up with the establishment profiting from “Black” entertainment that relies on tired and offensive tropes. To prove his point, Monk uses a pen name to write an outlandish “Black” book of his own, a book that propels him to the heart of hypocrisy and the madness he claims to disdain.
MOVIESinMO REVIEW
In American Fiction, we follow Thelonious “Monk” Ellison (Jeffrey Wright), a college professor and author trying to make it big. He’s not famous yet, and his struggle to sell his latest work pushes him to create a wild fantasy. Frustrated with media attention on Sintara Golden (Issa Rae), a Black author, Monk writes a joke novel, “My Pafology” (later renamed to “F***”), under the name Stagg R. Leigh. This fake persona becomes a sensation, but Monk is not thrilled. The film dives into Monk’s existential crisis, family drama, and the absurdity of the literary market. American Fiction is a deep, sometimes heavy-handed movie. It has a strong thesis, but some funny and serious moments beg for a reaction. After a debate about the white gaze, Monk standing before a photo of The Doll Test is one of those moments. It feels a bit forced and takes away from the film’s authenticity, turning it into a tug-of-war. While Monk struggles with his faux novel’s acclaim, the family story adds another layer. Death, sibling issues, and his mother’s declining health intensify Monk’s crisis. Sterling K. Brown shines as Monk’s younger brother, Clifford, exploring historically rigid views on Black manhood. However, the film sidelines its Black female characters, treating them more like accessories than integral parts of the story. Jeffrey Wright delivers a nuanced performance, portraying Monk’s internal struggles. He’s often unlikable, but we root for him because we see moments of growth following his flaws. The film stumbles in the final act, juggling daydreams and storylines before a somewhat underwhelming resolution. Yet, its focus on themes and concepts leaves a lasting impression. American Fiction speaks to the bias in the mass market, pushing Black art to be equivalent to Black strife. Jeffrey Wright’s incredible performance unveils the complexities and stains in the literary market. The film succeeds when it’s thoughtful, even if it occasionally tries too hard to evoke reactions. It makes a sensitive declaration about the intersection of Black art and life, pointing fingers at institutional constraints.
OUR RATING – AN ASSIMILATED 8.5
MEDIA
- Genre – Comedy
- Street date
- Digital – February 6, 2024.
- DVD/Blu-Ray – June 18, 2024
- Video – 1080p
- Screen size – 2.39:1
- Sound – English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, French: Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1, Audio descriptive
- Subtitles – English SDH, Spanish, French
Extras
- none