Difference between revisions of "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom"

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Latest revision as of 06:39, 15 March 2021

Ma Rainey's Black Bottom Cover.png

Ma Rainey's Black Bottom is a 2020 American drama film directed by George C. Wolfe and written by Ruben Santiago-Hudson, based on the play of the same name by August Wilson. The film, and it's source play, focus on Ma Rainey, an influential blues singer, and dramatizes a turbulent recording session in 1927 Chicago.[1]

Produced by Denzel Washington, Todd Black, and Dany Wolf, the film stars Viola Davis and Chadwick Boseman, with Glynn Turman, Colman Domingo, and Michael Potts in supporting roles.[2] The project was originally announced alongside Washington's Fences in 2013 as part of his ten-picture deal with HBO. The adaptation eventually moved to Netflix, and filming commenced in Pittsburgh in 2019. Boseman died during post-production in August 2020, making Black Bottom his final film appearance. The film is dedicated to his memory.[1]

Ma Rainey's Black Bottom began a limited theatrical release on November 25, 2020, before beginning to stream on Netflix on December 18 2020. The film was acclaimed by critics, who lauded the performances of Davis and Boseman, as well as the costumes and production values. It was named as one of the ten best films of 2020 by the American Film Institute.[3]

Plot

In 1927, Ma Rainey is a highly regarded blues singer from Georgia who has recently been contracted by white producers. A recording session for songs by Ma is scheduled by her manager Irvin to take place at Paramount recording studios in Chicago. Seasoned Georgia Jazz Band members Toledo, Cutler, and Slow Drag arrive on time without Ma, frustrating her producer Mel Sturdyvant. They are soon joined by Levee Green, the band's youngest member - overconfident trumpeter who has shown Sturdyvant his original compositions in the hopes of breaking away from Ma and getting his own record deal. Levee wants to arrange existing songs Black Bottom and compose his own music, something Sturdyvant (Jonny Coyne), the manager of this recording session seems to encourage. The rest of the band disapproves of his idea.

Ma arrives an hour late with her girlfriend Dussie Mae and her nephew Sylvester. Ma immediately forces Sturdyvant to have the opening words of the album be spoken by Sylvester, who has a blocking stutter. As a result, the group has to do multiple takes of the song “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom," much to the band's frustration. The humid atmosphere of a dingy recording studio is made hotter by the broiling tensions between musicians, producers, managers and an increasingly recalcitrant star. The session will include cutting Ma Rainey’s signature song – a saleable disc that will doubtless earn more for its white backers than any of the black players making the music.[4]

Ma interrupts the session after Irvin fails to bring her Coca-Cola, forcing Slow Drag and Sylvester to get her one. Ma complains to Cutler that her white bosses do not care for her as a person in part because of her race, and he agrees; she tells him that she does not want to be bossed around for her own art and should be allowed to do what she pleases. Ma added that this white people only do to get what they want, her voice and after they get what they want they will no longer respect her.

The group finally finishes recording, but Ma fires Levee soon afterwards, believing his ambition to be detrimental to the band. Levee then approach Sturdyvant about his original songs, but discovers that the producer will only purchase the songs, believing them to not be suited for a black singer. Levee suffers a mental breakdown, and after Toledo accidentally steps on his new shoes, Levee fatally stabs him in the back with the knife. Cutler and Slow Drag leave in horror as a regretful Levee cradles Toledo’s corpse. Later, Sturdyvant records Levee’s songs with a band consisting entirely of white men.

Ma Rainey.jpg

Black Racism

Black racism and black stereotype in this movie quite viscous. As the band members travel from south to north where white people lives they attract the attention of white citizen. Wherever the band members go in the town people turn their head towards them like looking at alien who's don't belong there.

Toledo has a fantastic monologue using food and cooking as symbols for the plight of Black people in America. “The colored man, he’s the leftovers,” he says solemnly at the end of his moment.

Levee also kept a horrifying and sorrowful history. In the first of his lachrymose monologues, Levee leases his anger that stems from watching the rape of his mother by eight or nine white men in her own home, when he was 8 years old. They only stopped when one of the men cut the young Levee’s chest, scarring him for life.[5]

Not enough of betrayal of white people in his childhood, the movie ends with Levee's song bought by the producers only with $5 and Levee was told that he can't record the song himself because the song might not sell in the market. Apparently Levee's black race is the reason why the song can't sell because later the song produced with whole new band of white people with better studio and instruments.

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (film). Retrieved January 30, 2021.
  2. Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (2020). IMDb. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
  3. Bahr, Lindsey. ‘Soul,’ ‘Ma Rainey’s’ among AFI’s top 10 films of the year.AP News. 26 January 2021. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
  4. Kermode, Mark. Ma Rainey's Black Bottom review – Chadwick Boseman and Viola Davis share the spotlight. The Guardian. 13 December 2020. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
  5. Bastién, Angelica Jade. Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom Fails the Woman Behind a Legend. Vulture. 23 December 2020. Retrieved January 30, 2021.