“A novelist who’s fed up with the establishment profiting from Black entertainment uses a pen name to write a book that propels him into the heart of the hypocrisy and madness he claims to disdain.”
Director: Cord Jefferson
Writers: Cord Jefferson, Percival Everett
Stars: Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, John Ortiz, Issa Rae, Sterling K. Brown
Release: December 22, 2023
IMDB
Thelonious “Monk” Ellison (Jeffrey Wright) is a struggling black author trying to find hope in the world while dealing with society’s hypocrisy and madness. Monk has hatred for culture’s obsession with stereotypes surrounding black culture, so in an effort to prove a point and make fun of the system, Monk uses a fake name and identity to write an absurd “Black” book. Much to his chagrin, the book becomes a massive hit. The more absurd Monk goes, the more profitable his meant to be satirical work becomes.
Whilst dealing with this professional conundrum, Monk is having to navigate his way through a series of additional personal problems. The angry author makes a trip to Boston where he not only takes part in a poorly attended seminar, but he also visits family that he has allowed himself to become estranged from.
Monk finds out his mother Agnes (Leslie Uggams) is beginning to show signs of Alzheimer’s. He is talking over the struggles of how to handle this sad development with his sister Lisa (Tracee Ellis Ross), when suddenly she suffers a fatal heart attack while the two are sharing drinks.
The tragedy of Lisa’s passing means that Monk, his mother, and Monk’s brother Cliff (Sterling K. Brown) must travel back up to a family vacation spot harboring troublesome memories and emotional baggage. Cliff brings his own backpack of baggage to the residence seeing how is recently divorced after his wife caught him cheating on her with a man. Cliff now lives life without fear engaging in frequent casual sex along with recreational alcohol and drug use.
Monk has the stress of trying to keep his career alive and his family sane. His frustration propels his fingers to begin tapping a fictional cliche-riddled novel entitled My Pafology. Monk convinces his agent Arthur (John Ortiz) to submit his work despite his better judgment, and to the shock of both, the piece grabs the attention of major publishers and the reading public as a whole. There are talks of a movie adaption before the book is even published. With the undeniable big-hit nature of his work, Monk is forced to continue the lie so he can care for his mother and keep his personal life afloat.
Amongst all the madness Monk does find a semblance of joy when he meets Coraline (Erika Alexander). She immediately takes a liking to Monk and the pair begin dating. She is with Monk when he brings his mother on nursing home visits and continues to provide hope in a time where he needs it most. However, the stability of Monk’s emotional safe haven begins to quake as his internal explosion clock begins ticking louder.
It becomes even trickier for Monk when his satirical work gets nominated for a literary award, which is awarded by a board of literary scholars that he ironically serves on. Among the big-time readers on the panel for this award is a fellow black author, Sintara Golden (Issa Rae). Monk has initial disdain for Sintara because he sees the book that got her on the map as another notch in profiteering over black culture stereotyping. However, through time on the panel Monk begins to realize he has more in common with his literary rival than he would have thought.
One of Monk’s biggest fears comes to fruition with the newly titled Fuck is given the literary award despite he and Sintra’s objection. With a distinguished sense of “fuck you”, Monk gets up, walks to the podium, and grabs the award from the moderator’s hands. He begins his speech saying he has a confession to make, before a cut to black.
What’s said in the speech isn’t revealed, but the motifs of American Fiction do complete a full cycle. Monk’s personal journey reaches a satisfying ending but that doesn’t mean it’s a happy one. Monk is still adjusting to what society wants and coming to grips with his personal decision as to whether or not he will bend the knee to what the people want versus what he thinks is best.
The silver screen version of Monk was inspired by the authorship of Percival Everett and his book Erasure which came out 23 years ago. According to Everett, there had been polite sniffs about adapting his material in the past, but it’s only been recently that his excitement level about an on-screen adaption has risen. In an interview with NPR, Everett stated that “in the last four or five years as this generation of young black artists are popping up, the people interested in making and adapting work has changed. It used to be 60-year old white guys looking to option something. And now it’s these young people who are interested in art and not commerce.”
The man who got the chance to bring Monk to life is Cord Jefferson, and damn if he did not deliver. American Fiction is Jefferson’s first directing experience but he has had plenty of experience on major projects as a writer. Jefferson wrote on Master Of None, The Good Place, the Emmy winning Watchmen short series and Station Eleven. His time on those shows should assure that audience of at least an entertaining floor, but Jefferson, combined with the actors casted, elevate American Fiction to be one of, if not the funniest films of 2023.
Jeffrey Wright plays a remarkable scrooge. He finds the perfect balance between humor, exasperation and sincerity. The character of Monk is not the most likable of the Ellison family, but it’s not his job to be. Wright plays the outcast of the family very well. Monk is always learning new information about his childhood that his siblings Lisa and Clifford kept from him. The character is someone who enjoys being alone, but then is offended when he isn’t given the inside scoop. His isolationism stems from a sense of entitlement. There is no doubt he sees himself as the smartest man in the room, and the strange thing about Monk is that he both loves and hates this burden.
Wright is able to flex his acting muscles because Jefferson’s screenplay is SCREAMING with outstanding scenes. It’s tough to pick a favorite. You have have Monk changing the book title from My Pafology to Fuck. You have the conversation with Lisa in the car when he first arrives in Boston, or her funeral on the beach. There is Monk and Sintara’s conversation at the prestigious book club or the heart-to-heart between Monk and his brother Clifford. Hell, there is the entire film, but these are just a few of the snippets that are most memorable.
Credit must be given to Sterling K. Brown because the performance he gives as Clifford is something I was not expecting. His over-the-top character is the antithesis of Monk. He expresses everything outward and looks for other people for personal satisfaction. Meanwhile, Monk would rather bury his head in paper and make people guess what his true emotions are at any moment.
One of the most heartbreaking scenes in American Fiction is when Clifford goes to visit his mother with Monk and Coraline at the nursing home. Agnes is suffering from dementia and struggling to be coherent on a daily basis, yet she manages to break Clifford’s spirit in the most innocent way. She mentions his sexuality and the facial reaction he has will break someone’s soul.
Speaking of breaking someone’s soul, we have to talk about Lisa. What an absolute firestarter of an introduction, followed by a shocking emotional vacuum. Tracee Ellis Ross hits the bullseye with every line reading she gives. She is in the movie for far less than one would hope, but she makes every minute of it worth it.
American Fiction is an outstanding piece of filmmaking because all bits of it come together. The screenplay alongside the acting talent makes the motion picture fly by. You have a compelling story with deep thought-provoking roots infused with smart humor. The movie brings out a smirk in its audience while also offering more than a few laugh out loud moments.
Simply put, it’s real good shit.
American Fiction has been nominated for five Academy Awards in total: Best Original Score, Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor and Best Adapted Screenplay.
As of late February, American Fiction was only in movie theaters.
STANKO RATING: A-
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