Pariah the Movie

[SoNotHer]

I've posted about it in the cinephiles thread. I can't wait to see it. Thank you for starting a thread about it.

Originally Posted by lettertodaddy

Has anyone seen this? It was released today (December 28) in NY, SF, LA, and DC. It's coming to Seattle in early January, and a few other cities as well. I'm thinking of driving across the border for it.



Synopsis:
Adepero Oduye, who had earlier starred in the short film, portrays Alike (pronounced ah-lee-kay), a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives with her parents Audrey and Arthur (Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell) and younger sister Sharonda (Sahra Mellesse) in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood. She has a flair for poetry, and is a good student at her local high school. Alike is quietly but firmly embracing her identity as a lesbian. With the sometimes boisterous support of her best friend, out lesbian Laura (Pernell Walker), Alike is especially eager to find a girlfriend. At home, her parents’ marriage is strained and there is further tension in the household whenever Alike’s development becomes a topic of discussion. Pressed by her mother into making the acquaintance of a colleague’s daughter, Bina (Aasha Davis), Alike finds Bina to be unexpectedly refreshing to socialize with. Wondering how much she can confide in her family, Alike strives to get through adolescence with grace, humor, and tenacity – sometimes succeeding, sometimes not, but always moving forward.

[Admin]

This looks amazing!
I doubt they'll be showing it here in any of our theatres for a while, it takes several months sometimes for us to get any of the indie-type films.
I'll definitely be waiting to see this one!

[dykeumentary]

In December this film was won the Independent Spirit award in NYC, and the filmmakers held several events in the build-up to the release. i attended a workshop evening that the NY Women in Television and Film held at Eastman Kodak (Kodak had donated some film stock - yes it was shot of film!). The producer and director and some cast members talked about the process of making "Pariah" and showed some of the film. It was informative and really exciting for me - i even took notes for the first time since high school! I appreciated that they took the time to have this event for women -- the film had just been picked up for distribution, and they were very, very busy.

It also fair to mention that the lead actor, while giving an award-winning performance, is straight. So this film is ground-breaking in so many aspects, but not the one where straight people play non-straight roles.

I am happy for this film because it was a looong processs and ultimately successful for a woman producer and woman director. I don't know of another example of a widely released film that has that. I am also happy for this film, and for the film-going audiences, and for myself as a woman visual artist, that a GOOD, independently made film is getting seen.