Director: Justin Simien
MPAA Rating: R
Purchase: Amazon
Born out of a fake movie trailer, Justin Simien’s feature debut, Dear White People, is just the right kind of biting satire we need in our current social climate. It’s the type of film that holds a mirror up to its audience and poses a lot of questions about race but doesn’t dare propose any answers.
This smartly written and incredibly funny comedy was a hit on the festival circuit last year, premiering at Sundance then making its way across the country, delighting and challenging audiences with its wry sense of humor and confrontational content. Along the way it was nominated for multiple awards, including the Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature and Best First Screenplay.
The film follows a group of students at Winchester University, a prestigious Ivy League school that prides itself on its diverse student body, although the students of color see it otherwise. One such student named Sam White (Tessa Thompson) decides to rally against her perceived oppressors and runs (somewhat jokingly) for president of her house, a traditionally black-student dorm that has recently been switched to accepting random student assignments. Sam also runs a campus radio program called Dear White People and has an afro-centric publication called Ebony and Ivy. Though Sam’s story is only one of four main plot lines within the film, hers is featured most prominently and acts as the major thread that ties everything together.
With much less of a college-spoof-movie tone than I expected, the film carries a more serious message than something like Animal House or PCU, but it still packs in a ton of laughs while managing to raise some important issues. It’s deserving of all the awards and notoriety it’s been receiving, and if you haven’t seen it yet, the newly released Blu-ray is totally worth picking up.
The disc is packed with features, including a decent making-of featurette; a music video for the song Get Your Life by Caught a Ghost, which is also directed by Simien; outtakes; deleted scenes; two commentary tracks; and all the various viral marketing videos that were released online for the film.
While it’s not at a Criterion level of bonus content, it’s still a substantial amount that brings more laughs and interesting facts about the film than just watching the movie by itself. I’m particularly fond of the PSAs and the “leaked” Winchester U diversity video. The two commentary tracks feature one with director Simien and one with both him and the cast, so commentary track lovers will have a blast with this one.
Dear White People is a fantastic debut from Simien, and the Blu-ray is worth owning in any collection. It’s loaded with great features, and the transfer does Simien’s excellent framing and lighting choices a great deal of service. Dear white people, please go by this Blu-ray and support this movie.
