One Line Review: This series is worth seeing because it deals with the topic of racism in an original and multi-layered way, and above all presents it in a very human way.
Youtube Trailer Dear White People
Starring: Logan Browning, Brandon P. Bell
Director: Justin Simien
Release Date: 22 September 2021
Introduction
Fargo, From Dusk till Dawn, Bates Motel – in recent years there have been a number of examples of how successful films are reinterpreted as series. Nevertheless, some people might have wondered why Dear White People was given this honor. After all, the 2014 film was received very favorably by critics. The story of a student and her fight against racism was a commercial hit, but not even in the USA. In this country, no one has even noticed anything about it, as there was no rental company for a DVD release, let alone a cinema release. Only years later did Netflix include the tragic comedy in its program.
Plot and Analysis
Winchester University is cosmopolitan, tolerant, liberal – at least that’s what it claims. But Samantha White ( Logan Browning ) knows better: On her radio show βDear White Peopleβ, she repeatedly reports on racist incidents on campus, which makes her the target of the satirical magazine Pastiche. The pioneer for black rights has a secret: She is in a relationship with the white man Gabe ( John Patrick Amedori ) – but nobody is allowed to know anything about it. The college situation escalates when an incident occurs during a party involving student Reggie Green ( Marque Richardson ).
In βDear White Peopleβ, a college radio show of the same name is used to tackle everyday racism. The humor is of fluctuating quality, from satirical interludes to ordinary school comedies, everything is included. What distinguishes the series, however, are the multi-layered characters and the very human approach to the subject.
The person behind the character
It was also the streaming giant who commissioned the series version. Justin Simien, who directed the film and wrote the screenplay based on his own experience at the university, did not allow himself to be asked twice, he even took on three of the ten episodes himself. The story and the characters are quite similar in both cases, in part, they are even played by the same actors. Dear White People was able to use the extended running time to deepen the characters.
They are the main reason to watch the series. The first nine episodes are each dedicated to a character through whose eyes current events are shown. This allows Dear White People to gradually dismantle initial stereotypes and show the people behind them. Coco ( Antoinette Robertson ), for example, becomes more than just an antagonist of Sam in this way. And their friend Troy ( Brandon P. Bell ), who initially looks like a spineless puppet of the university management, develops more profile in this way.
Differentiated drama, ambivalent humor
This is especially important in the second half when the series is developing more and more towards drama. An episode staged by Barry Jenkins ( Moonlight ) kicks off when the fun gets serious and the previously humorous racism finally shows its ugly face. It’s nice that it’s Dear White People, not as easy as one might fear. Just because Sam is fighting against racism, for example, doesn’t mean that she won’t make mistakes. Conversely, her white friend Gabe himself is quickly the victim of unjustified hostility. And then there are the conflicts within the black community, which not only pursue different goals but also have different experiences – after all, there is more to life than black and white.
What works less well is the show’s humor. The satirical impact is mainly evident at the beginning, after which the jokes become simpler. Sometimes even really clumsy. If, for example, the budding journalist Lionel ( DeRon Horton ) has wet dreams about his roommate Troy or another fellow student only has her dog on her mind, then the story degenerates into a colorless school comedy that doesn’t really need it in this form. Sometimes Dear White People is even funny later, for example in a fictional series that everyone always looks at. But you shouldn’t rely on that.
Conclusion
Despite these passages, the Netflix production is worth seeing because it deals with the topic of racism in an original and multi-layered way, and above all presents it in a very human way. If Winchester University is fighting for equality, it is not out of a moral ivory tower, but downstairs, where meeting people – regardless of skin color or gender – can be really complicated. And sometimes it’s really painful.
