- Remember the names of Gerard Bush and Christopher Renz. They are the co-directors and co-writers behind 2020’s horror/thriller Antebellum starring the magnificent Janelle Monáe. It is the debut film for Bush and Renz, it premiered during the pandemic so there’s virtually no box office, and the reviews are rough- so here’s hoping they get another chance.
- the prologue is a Faulkner quote- “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.”
- the opening shot many be cinema’s single finest shot in 2020. Their camera travels underneath the Spanish moss and past Don Johnson’s house in Django Unchained. It features these beautiful lens flares, shot during the magic hour for prime photography. There are more than a dozen characters involved in the one single shot- so the choreography has to be perfect. It has this tense, dramatic score— in total the tracking shot lasts four minutes. It is like a minor version of Joe Wright’s Dunkirk shot in Atonement.
- The very next shot is a slow-motion escape attempt. These are slaves on a plantation—horrifying.
- Bush and Renz are swinging for the fences with both style and content. Their theme, tying the Faulkner quote to the bizarre horror story set-up, is about the generational ramifications of slavery in America (brought to shocking, and literal, situation in the film). Throughout the film characters talk about racism being “in the DNA” and dealing with the past.
- Gorgeous Fincher yellow natural lighting under the Confederate army tent
- Some critics clearly resented the ambitious swing—and I’d be fine with the criticism that it doesn’t all mesh. But they cannot be objecting to combination of the atrocities shown on film and the undeniable stylistic and visual beauty of the film. Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave (which is based on a true story, and less of maybe a M. Night Shyamalan set-up like Antebellum– which may be why critics loved one and not the other) is also both beautiful and horrific. McQueen’s work also has a similarly jaw-dropping, elaborate tracking shot long take -Lupita Nyong’o flagellation. Those that object to the stunning frame of the light pouring in on the character hanging in death in Antebellum—would also have to object to praising the stunning frames in Pasolini’s Salo.
- The reoccurring airplane overhead is from Roma, but also fitting here with letting us know early on that this isn’t set in the 18th or 19th century like we may have thought at first with that opening shot surveying the atrocities of a southern plantation with Confederate soldiers.
- Slow-motion heavy, a constant luminous full moon during the night scenes
- The film is not perfect, some of the writing can be glib—and poor Gabourey Sidibe is done no favors with the writing for her character. Everything she tries does not work – nails on a chalkboard- but certainly the strengths of Antebellum and the admirable ambition outweigh the flaws.
- Highly Recommend- top 10 of the year quality
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I had a good argument with some friends over this one haha. I’m glad you posted this because I was turned off by the negatives reviews and probably would have missed it otherwise. I have to admit the middle act bothers me a bit. It’s not without its strengths but it just isn’t up to the same level as the first and last acts. But those are really worth it, and the final scene is just transcendent.
@Delcan- haha yes this one is a good one for discussion and debates for sure
Also directed by Gerard Bush and Christopher Renz:
https://youtu.be/rQLVU4j7Ejo
https://youtu.be/xYtsL9znopI
I think Antebellum is a bad concept executed unevenly.
The biggest weakness is how it feels like a caricature of everyone involved (especially the “real/present” scenes), with really exaggerated dialogue that creates a barrier against the characters we are supposed to care for and makes some of the characters who are supposed to be horrific just seem kind of silly.
My second biggest issue with it is the fact that it makes the “antebellum” scenes look more beautiful than the “real/present” world scenes. I agree with your point that just because its beautiful does not mean it is being glorified, but when the part of the movie that is supposed to be hellish looks beautiful and the rest looks kind of dull I think that is a problem.
I also think the movie suffered from uncertainty about how it was going to handle its “twist” (that could be the marketing team’s fault, but if you know the premise going in the story structure doesn’t make a whole lot of sense).
That said, I agree with you about how well-done some of the shots (especially the opening) and the “antebellum” scenes in general are done. It’s just a shame that they tried to include “real/present” scenes and those were done so poorly as to make the concept in general not work (though admittedly it is a concept that is really hard to make work imo). But I agree the directors are worth watching for in the future.
I personally give it a 3/5 (average, not recommend, with the really good parts canceled out by the bad parts and an inherently flawed story).