Classic Hollywood Melodrama. Landmark film regarding race relations. A hollow success about career over marriage. A sad story about a girl passing for white.
Sarah Jane is both a victim and a "hero". Unlike her mother who silently accepted her destiny and social status, Sarah Jane seized any opportunity to challenge this unequal status with her skin color and found ways to integrate into the white mainstream society.
The race theme sets the film apart from other Hollywood Melodramas. The context reflects 1950s society's attitudes and prejudices against black people; it paints a picture of how some people defined black people based on their skin color.
This phenomenon has far-reaching consequences, such as the late Michael Jackson being questioned for "bleaching" his skin. Do we have the right to change our "destiny"? If so, to what extent? Give up your identity in pursuit of something "more valuable"? The gap between mainstream social values and personal value orientation is huge. Fortunately, individuals still have the right to choose independently.
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