I am an independent film fan. I love the abnormal, strange, films that really make you think and some of those have a narrative plot and some don't. I'm not going to categorized Eve's Bayou as a black film as I wouldn't call a film with an all white cast and a white director as a white film. It does have a fantastic cast and a story and scenery that is so appropriately set in the beautiful rural landscape of the south. The cinematography is stunning. Not only did the cinematographer know how to film the countryside but there are also the sequences of the flashbacks and the psychic visual interpretations that really had me paying close attention. The way it's filmed is so gritty as if that is truly a memory. A memory and a prediction according to the visual image is gritty, brilliant flashes of a thought where there are familiar characters but that person isn't really sure of what's happening. That's why the characters interpret someone, one of the children, dying. They see the flash but they don't know what it's in reference to and the black and white images really captured that uncertainty because I didn't know what was happening either.
The actors in this film are all incredibly talented. I recognize Jurnee Smollett who plays the young Eve as a regular guest star on Full House. Meagan Good is a very talented actress who has been in plenty of television and film recently. Samuel L. Jackson of course is the celebrity name in the film. His Cajun accent seems dead on, that mix of French and English that is so rampant in that area and I enjoyed the authenticity. Lynn Whitfield is very talented and I hadn't seen her in many of her performances but have certainly heard of her. Her performance is very memorable as the mother, very commanding and her presence draws my attention in immediately. The last name I'll mention is Debbi Morgan whose character is Mozelle. She's very recognizable to me because of her performance in the television film Roots. Her screen presence is absolutely mesmerizing. Her eyes really capture my attention and as she speaks it's always as if it's about something really important and in this film, it usually is because she's a psychic. People are drawn to her because she has the gift of sight and can absolutely answer someone's question.
Lastly, I do want to say that unlike the previous films, I couldn't find a strong connection in the plot. As soon as I felt like the story was going somewhere incredibly dramatic and compelling, it immediately falls flat. The father's various affairs leads him to his death. His sister has a premonition of this. Eve catches him with another woman. I just hadn't really been interested in the story itself because it isn't a powerful story. The narration begins with a woman talking about her name and some family history. Therefore, I expect more family history throughout the story than what is presented in the film. For example, some historical flashbacks to Eve's namesake and her story that relates to the present story being told. Unfortunately, I did not receive that. Maybe my expectations are too high for the film but I don't think so. I've heard so much about the film and was disappointed after watching it regarding the plot but certainly not the visual aspects of it as I've already discussed. Though I feel that the plot falls flat doesn't mean that I'm not intrigued by the dynamics of family and the strong bonds that are formed within this particular family. There are the sibling bonds between the three children (Eve going so far as to curse her father because of what she thought he did to her sister), Roz's relationship with Mozelle, Mozelle's relationships with her husbands and Louis's relationships with everyone else. This is a strong family dynamic and ultimately it's what bonds them to one another in times of sadness and joy.
The actors in this film are all incredibly talented. I recognize Jurnee Smollett who plays the young Eve as a regular guest star on Full House. Meagan Good is a very talented actress who has been in plenty of television and film recently. Samuel L. Jackson of course is the celebrity name in the film. His Cajun accent seems dead on, that mix of French and English that is so rampant in that area and I enjoyed the authenticity. Lynn Whitfield is very talented and I hadn't seen her in many of her performances but have certainly heard of her. Her performance is very memorable as the mother, very commanding and her presence draws my attention in immediately. The last name I'll mention is Debbi Morgan whose character is Mozelle. She's very recognizable to me because of her performance in the television film Roots. Her screen presence is absolutely mesmerizing. Her eyes really capture my attention and as she speaks it's always as if it's about something really important and in this film, it usually is because she's a psychic. People are drawn to her because she has the gift of sight and can absolutely answer someone's question.
Lastly, I do want to say that unlike the previous films, I couldn't find a strong connection in the plot. As soon as I felt like the story was going somewhere incredibly dramatic and compelling, it immediately falls flat. The father's various affairs leads him to his death. His sister has a premonition of this. Eve catches him with another woman. I just hadn't really been interested in the story itself because it isn't a powerful story. The narration begins with a woman talking about her name and some family history. Therefore, I expect more family history throughout the story than what is presented in the film. For example, some historical flashbacks to Eve's namesake and her story that relates to the present story being told. Unfortunately, I did not receive that. Maybe my expectations are too high for the film but I don't think so. I've heard so much about the film and was disappointed after watching it regarding the plot but certainly not the visual aspects of it as I've already discussed. Though I feel that the plot falls flat doesn't mean that I'm not intrigued by the dynamics of family and the strong bonds that are formed within this particular family. There are the sibling bonds between the three children (Eve going so far as to curse her father because of what she thought he did to her sister), Roz's relationship with Mozelle, Mozelle's relationships with her husbands and Louis's relationships with everyone else. This is a strong family dynamic and ultimately it's what bonds them to one another in times of sadness and joy.
1 comment:
I agree that the films scenes were amazingly beautiful! I loved how the country side was shown. Eve wanting to curse her dad definitely shows how strong of a bond she had with her sister. Good points!
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