Movie Reaction: The American Society of Magical Negroes

Formula: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind / The Legend of Baggar Vance

Satire in film is a funny thing. There’s a “bite the hand that feeds you” element to them which creates dual valid responses to them. Last year, Barbie was praised for being both too feminist and not feminist enough. It called about male dominated society enough to make some uncomfortable while also being a wave or two behind on current feminist literature. American Fiction also had to balance how accusatory vs. inviting it chose to be to audiences. The American Society of Magical Negroes (ASMN) is having a similar conversation as American Fiction. They aren’t very similar as films, but both do tackle the idea of the white response to black people. Being in the white male demographic (and one with an inflated enough opinion of my thoughts that I’m posting this as though anyone cares), I struggle with what to think of my reaction to these films. I loved ASMN. So, my first response is to pat myself on the back for being a white person who “gets it”. Then again, this is a film with a wide release by a major distributor. To reach that point, it has to be a sanitized version of its message. It’s a film that is made to be palatable in its messaging so that someone like me can laugh at the jokes and come away believing that I got the message. And, without getting ahead of myself, I’ll say that’s why the end of the movie really packed a punch.

Let me back up an summarize a bit. ASMN is a film about a 27-year-old African American failing artist named Aren (Justice Smith), who is recruited to, well, a magical society of black people tasked with ensuring white people remain comfortable enough to not go taking their frustrations out on black people. The commentary is on the nose and it knows it. Aren's first task is to restore the ego of a frustrated programmer, Jason (Drew Tarver). This eventually leads to Aren having to decide if he can let go of a co-worker he has fallen for, Lizzie (An-Li Bogan), since Jason likes her as well. Oh, and if Aren does decide to put himself first, he risks of of the American Society of Magical Negroes losing their powers and dooming all black Americans. 

Frankly, I loved the movie, because in the middle of all the satire is a pretty straightforward and delightful RomCom, which Smith and Bogan are perfectly equipped for. There are some decent jokes throughout the movie, but it's not as laugh out loud funny as even American Fiction. It's far more aiming for clever, which I found to be the better tone for it anyway. Aspects of the end felt more unresolved than I cared for. A bit like writer/director Kobi Libii felt the limits of the metaphor. David Alan Grier, as Aren's recruiter to the Society, does a great job selling the logic of the group. Taver and later Michaela Watkins and Rupert Friend maybe make it a little too easy for people to not see themselves in the performance. I certainly thought, "I'm not perfect, but I'm way better than Taver's character". The cleverness of the premise and Smith and Bogan's chemistry really make the whole thing work.

Verdict: Strongly Recommend

After the Credits (i.e. spoilers)

OK. The ending. It turns out Lizzie is part of her own magical society - SOSWAG (Society of Supportive Wives and Girlfriends). At first, I thought it was just a coy little joke, but the more I've thought about it, the more it alters my entire perception of the movie. I was personally so focused on Aren's racial struggles, that I hadn't really thought about how much Lizzie was an idealized love interest. This even opens the question of who her target was: Aren or Jason? That could change everything about the movie depending on the answer. I already really enjoyed the movie, that stinger at the end made me so excited to watch this again.