To be honest, this is probably my favorite one I've seen so far in awards season, and it's the most surprising one. Why? Because looking at the title we must have thought it was an accusation of racism, it must be full of hatred, full of roar, part of the film is like that, but most of the time it's teaching people how to love and telling people that hate only makes problems Worse and worse, looking at the innocent shooting of a black boy by a white policeman from a different perspective is a balanced and unbiased argument. The audience, even if they are provoked at a certain moment, is moved by love most of the time.
The film is basically made up, but things like this do happen quite often in the United States. The black guy was only stopped by the police for a traffic violation. Although he didn't have a gun, he was killed by the police because of his bad attitude and disobedience. In this story, there is also a black girl beside the man who was killed by mistake, but she is a "little princess" who is from a wealthy family, goes to a white private school, and originally established a harmonious relationship with white people. She originally thought she had blended into the white upper class, but now because of this, she was dragged back into the racial struggle that the black community often faced. Are you sacrificing your privacy and life to stand up for your friends?
Although the film explores racial discrimination with the prejudice of white police against blacks as an introduction, it also shows the problems existing in the black community itself. Because of historical reasons, many black people have been poor for generations, grew up in a criminal environment, and kept repeating the mistakes of their parents. But there are also people, such as the family of the heroine of this film, who hope to change the lives of future generations. Through efforts to improve their status, they finally got rid of the gang and entered a well-off society, but because of the color of the skin and family background, they will never be able to get rid of it. the fate of being discriminated against.
However, the advantage of the film is that it does not only stop at exposing contradictions and anger, but also allows young people to see why black people are often discriminated against, whether it is because of historical and cultural background, and how to change other people's prejudice, And how to accept their own race and culture, and no longer be treated unfairly because of it.
There are several very touching and violent moments in the film, each time two viewpoints are raised. For example, the heroine's dialogue with her uncle who is a police officer, or her dialogue with her white classmates, all mention the feelings and thoughts of both the black boy who was shot and the police officer who was afraid of being attacked and shot at the time, rather than being partial which side. The different remarks and viewpoints of the two sides will make people feel that the film is always balanced and objective. The audience may not only sympathize with the deceased, but also understand the behavior of the police, and finally achieve the purpose of defuse anger.
Ultimately, you'll find that the title The Hate U Give is an irony, not a fact.
What is even more rare is that although this film is related to racial discrimination, it is a complete youth film, told from the perspective of a high school girl, with all the elements of a youth campus film, and even a high school graduation party, which looks more Like a Cinderella fairy tale. It's just that Cinderella is a girl from a black neighborhood who goes to a private school. From this perspective, many young people who may not have been interested in serious racial topics before may like this film.
In particular, I would like to talk about the transformation of American youth films.
A long time ago, everyone must still remember youth films like "Mean Girl" and "Clueless". The heroine of Lindsay Lohan was surrounded by black or Asian girls as "friends" and was bullied by rich white girls. Get the love of handsome white guys with kindness. And now, the heroines in these kinds of movies are still bullied by the rich white girls, and they are still loved by cute and kind white handsome guys, but the heroines are replaced by black or Asian girls.
This is the new Hollywood!
Here, Amandla Stenberg or Zendaya already have more than one "white boyfriend" on the big screen. It should be said that they have been in love with handsome white guys on the big screen, and the film appointments are endless. And white girls? Absolutely no chance! I am very sympathetic to the current young white actress in Hollywood, and will not be the second Lindsay Lohan, at most a villain. Not even Disney's mermaids looking for them. Prince Charming likes people of color these days. For example, Chris, played by KJ Apa in this film, is white and dazzling in the black area, but he loves the cool girl from the black area in the school. Don't ask why, everyone's preferences are different. And it does generate more points of interest, and it is no longer a repetition of the same old story. For example, in this film, the scene where the white boyfriend is brought home by the heroine to see his father for the first time is full of jokes about racial and cultural differences, which is very warm and lovely.
Of course, I personally don't recommend writing characters who were originally white as people of color for the sake of diversity, but something like this film has a lot to do with the black community, or "To All the Boys I've Loved Before". It's a shy Asian girl who doesn't like to talk. These are very natural and do not appear deliberate. It also seems that these white boyfriends are particularly open-minded and will not determine love based on skin color, and are more likable.
From Spider-Man on the big screen, to the basketball prince, and the rich second generation of white people, now they have noticed the beauty of non-white girls, and I hope everyone can open their hearts more and more to accept the beauty of diversity in this world.
View more about The Hate U Give reviews
