Английская Википедия:American Fiction (film)
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American Fiction is a 2023 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Cord Jefferson, in his feature directorial debut. Based on the 2001 novel Erasure by Percival Everett, the film follows a frustrated novelist-professor who writes an outlandishly stereotypical "black" book as satire, only for the book to be published to high sales and praise. It stars Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, Issa Rae, Sterling K. Brown, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams, Adam Brody, and Keith David.
American Fiction premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2023, where it won the People's Choice Award. It received a limited theatrical release by Amazon MGM Studios on December 15, 2023, with an expansion on December 22, 2023. It received positive reviews from critics, with Wright's performance earning widespread acclaim.
It was named one of the top 10 films of 2023 by the American Film Institute and has received numerous accolades. At the 96th Academy Awards it earned five nominations, including Best Picture, Best Actor (Wright), and Best Supporting Actor (Brown), as well as two nominations at the 81st Golden Globe Awards and won Best Adapted Screenplay at the 29th Critics' Choice Awards.
Plot
Thelonious "Monk" Ellison is a black writer and professor in Los Angeles. His novels receive academic praise, but sell poorly, and publishers reject his most recent manuscript for not being "black enough". His university places him on temporary leave due to his brashness with students over racial issues and suggests he attend a literary seminar and spend time with family in his hometown, Boston. At the seminar, Monk sees low attendance at his panel and a packed room for the panel of Sintara Golden, whose bestselling novel We's Lives in Da Ghetto seems to pander to black stereotypes.
In Boston, Monk bonds with his mother Agnes, who shows signs of Alzheimer's disease, and sister Lisa, a medical doctor but a heavy smoker. Lisa suffers a heart attack while having drinks with Monk and dies in the hospital.
Monk's estranged brother, Cliff, who is also an MD, attends Lisa's funeral. Cliff is divorced after his wife caught him cheating with a man; he now abuses drugs and alcohol. Monk meets and starts dating Coraline, a lawyer living across the street.
Frustrated by Sintara's success and the costs of care for his mother, Monk writes My Pafology, a send-up of expectations black writers are burdened with, with a melodramatic plot involving bad dialogue, deadbeat dads, gang violence, and drugs. After submitting it to publishers out of spite, he is offered a $750,000 advance, and his agent Arthur convinces him to adopt the persona of former convict "Stagg R. Leigh". As "Stagg", Monk is offered a movie deal from producer Wiley. In response to insulting comments from publishing executives, Monk attempts to sabotage the deal by demanding the title be changed to Fuck. Unexpectedly, the executives agree. Monk is invited to judge the New England Book Association's Literary Award in a "diversity push", and he reluctantly accepts. One fellow judge is Sintara, who Monk is surprised to learn shares many of his views.
Agnes moves into an assisted-living facility, but adapts poorly. Cliff briefly returns to Boston, but leaves after Agnes makes a homophobic remark. Fuck becomes a bestseller. Coraline, Cliff, and the public remain unaware "Stagg" is Monk, and the FBI contacts the publisher, believing Stagg is a fugitive as he has claimed in interviews.
On family housekeeper Lorraine's wedding day, Monk finds Cliff living in Agnes's beach house with two other men: Cliff never left Boston, and has been partying and doing drugs, but Lorraine is happy to have him attend the wedding, where Monk will walk her down the aisle. At the reception, Monk and Cliff discuss the legacy of their father after his suicide, and Cliff encourages Monk to let people "love all of him".
Monk's publisher submits Fuck for the literary award, forcing him to judge his own novel. The panel's white judges rave over Fuck, though Sintara calls the book "pandering". Monk agrees, but later argues that her book is "trauma porn" and inauthentic to her middle-class background. Sintara argues that she extensively researched her book, interviewing voiceless people, and is "giving the market what it wants", and that it isn't her fault if white readers form stereotypes based on one book. Monk is offended when he finds Coraline enjoyed reading Fuck; they argue heatedly and break up.
At the award ceremony, Monk goes on stage after Fuck is announced as the winner and says he has a confession to make. The screen cuts to black: the story is revealed to be Monk's screenplay based on his experiences, written for Wiley's production company as an alternative to the Fuck film adaptation. Monk has not revealed his identity to the public, and is still separated from Coraline. Wiley likes the screenplay but asks Monk to write a different ending.
The film portrays different endings, including one in which police fatally shoot Monk at the ceremony. Wiley—also busy filming blaxploitation film Plantation Annihilation—loves it, and the film moves into production. Monk drives away with Cliff after he and one of Wiley's actors, playing a slave, acknowledge each other.
Cast
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Production
On November 10, 2022, it was reported that Jeffrey Wright was cast in the untitled film, based on the novel Erasure by Percival Everett. Cord Jefferson would adapt the novel and direct in his directorial debut.[1][2] T-Street Productions and MRC Film are producing the film. On December 2, 2022, it was announced that Tracee Ellis Ross will also star in film with Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams, Sterling K. Brown, Myra Lucretia Taylor, John Ortiz, Issa Rae, and Adam Brody also cast.[3] The film wrapped production in Boston in early December, with COVID-19 safety precautions used on set.[4] That month, MGM's Orion Pictures acquired the film's worldwide distribution rights.[5] In July 2023, with the announcement of its world premiere, the film's title was reported to be American Fiction.[6] It is the first film from Orion to be distributed through Amazon MGM Studios Distribution.[7]
Release
American Fiction premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2023, where it won the People's Choice Award.[6][8] This was followed by a run in the festival circuit, culminating in its United States premiere at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Los Angeles on December 5, 2023.[9] It had a limited theatrical release in the United States on December 15, 2023, with an expansion the following week (December 22, 2023).[10] The film was initially set for a November 3, 2023 release date before changing to its current date.[11] The film is scheduled to be released in the United Kingdom and Ireland by Curzon Film on February 2, 2024.[12]
The film will be released for digital platforms on February 6, 2024.[13]
Reception
Box office
The film made $229,000 from seven theaters in its opening weekend, a per-venue average of $32,400.[14] Following its five Oscar nominations, the film expanded from 852 theaters to 1,702 in its 7th week of release and made $2.9 million, an increase of 65% from the previous weekend, and a running total of $11.8 million.[15]
Critical response
Шаблон:Multiple image Шаблон:Rotten Tomatoes prose Шаблон:Metacritic film prose Audiences polled by PostTrak gave the film a 90% positive score, with 83% saying they would definitely recommend it.[14]
In her review for The Hollywood Reporter, Lovia Gyarke wrote that "American Fiction is smart and, thanks to its fine cast, has genuine heart", commending Wright's "subtle physicality […] that contributes depth to his character", as well as "Uggams' increasingly somber performance as Agnes and Brown’s delightful comedic turn".[16]
Filmmaker Gina Prince-Bythewood praised the film, saying "Your first film should tell the world who you are as an artist. With American Fiction, Cord Jefferson has screamed into a bullhorn. Bold, chaotic, unflinching, personal. Cord has channeled his creative truths into a searing indictment of biased norms. As artists of color, we recognize all of it. The best humor comes from truth, and he yields laughter as a weapon. Forces offenders to pay attention. To take a look at themselves. But Cord wants more. He wants the world to see our humanity. So he couples his blistering satire with a heartbreaking family drama. His collaboration with Jeffrey Wright is a triumph, giving the actor the words and space to create a performance that conquers that same tightrope. Cord is a writer/director and he wholly owns this vision. This is a first film that excites us all for what’s to come next."[17]
Accolades
See also
Notes
References
External links
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- ↑ "16 Directors Praise 2023's Best Films: Alfonso Cuarón on 'Killers of the Flower Moon,' Jane Campion on 'Priscilla' and More": Gina Prince-Bythewood on American Fiction, Variety, December 13, 2023.
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