Casual Conversation

Decided to watch American Fiction today, because it was advertised on Amazon Prime and the trailer seemed interesting enough. Also, apparently it won an Oscar this year for best screenplay adaption. Basically, the protagonist is a black author (and professor of literature) who is frustrated because his ambitious and highbrow novels aren't selling too well, because literary critics seem to prefer more "ghetto" style stories that lean heavily on black stereotypes and ebonics as being a more authentic representation of the black experience. After getting hit with some unexpected bills, he breaks down and decides to write his own ghetto novel, with plenty of violence, crime, and gratuitous expletives, and releases it under an alias. The critics end up loving it and pretty soon he is getting inundated with interview requests and movie deals while having to lead a double life as a gangster turned novelist so as to not break his cover.

Long story short, while I definitely enjoyed the premise, the movie turned out to be rather long-winded and boring, with lots of semi-relevant side stories that ultimately didn't go anywhere, while teetering erratically between the same two extremes the author finds himself caught up in, and it doesn't really have much of a satisfying ending either. Best I can say is there was an attempt to make a black American Beauty, but it ultimately lacked conviction and panache.