I'm zoomin' back and forth in time on these festival-posts to a near-incomprehensible extent, aren't I? Such is the problem I face in trying to cover current programming that I saw early before I fully catch up with past reviews.So for those of you who haven't done the math: I've posted all of Day One and Day Two, none of Day Three, some of Day Four, and now Day Six. (I didn't attend Day Five because my eyes were fixed on the election and because only a few low-profile features were scheduled because programmers knew there would be quite a few in my position.)
But I digress. I wanted to cover a film playing tonight before it screens. It's called A Good Day to be Black & Sexy and, no, it has nothing to do with Barack Obama.
The film was written and directed by first-timer Dennis Dortch and consists of five short segments, linked by common themes about African-American sexual relationships in modern America. There's a woman who refuses to reciprocate oral sex when her husband gives it to her, another who is frustrated by her married boyfriend's lack of commitment, a first-generation Asian-American who's scared to tell her family she has a black partner, et cetera et cetera.
A Good Day to be Black & Sexy is effective for about a half an hour--around two segments worth--but it wears out its welcome quickly and becomes episodic. African-American audiences may enjoy the movie more than I did because it was made with them in mind--think Tyler Perry with less religion and more sex--but that doesn't excuse the fact that it's a decidedly mediocre effort. Dortch may be on to something --the multi-story structure admittedly suits his style well--but it's not hugely apparent in the final cut. And not a single performance in the picture stands out as being particularly inspired. Count it a missed opportunity. 2 Buckets out of 4.
A Good Day to be Black & Sexy screens tonight, Weds., Nov 5. at 7 p.m. and Fri., Nov. 7 at 12:45 p.m.
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