For Colored Girls

Anyone can tell simply by the title of this film that I am not the target audience. I’m neither coloured, nor female. But that doesn’t mean that I can’t be moved by it, or find it powerful.

This is very much an issues film. The synopsis on IMDB says: “Each of the women portray one of the characters represented in the collection of twenty poems, revealing different issues that impact women in general and women of color in particular.”

So be warned, it is confronting.

Throughout the film, there are monologues that, if you weren’t expecting them, might be construed as arty and overdone. I didn’t find them that way, but I could see how some people might. These monologues reminded me of Slam Poetry I’ve heard (such as this one) but slightly different, more personal rather than general perhaps. So it did not surprise me when I discovered that the movie began as play, which began as a collection of 20 poems.

The play's full title was: For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf

Now I’ll get to the actors. Wow! Some of these performances blew me away!

Kimberly Elise and Anika Noni Rose in particular impressed me. Their conviction was superb!

A year or so ago I was saying to one of my friends that what I wanted from Whoopi Goldberg was for her to make a comeback of sorts and do a serious, indie film where she could show off how well she can actually act rather than another comedy where talent can easily go unnoticed. Well, I don’t know how indie this film was, but it certainly was everything else I wanted from her.

Even Janet Jackson portrayed her character perfectly. It’s too easy to associate her with the superficial pop music industry and sometimes we forget that she has considerable talent. I’m mainly referring to her acting here, being a film review, but if you look amongst her music too, you’ll find talent there too.

Without listing them all, it needs to be said that the whole cast did an excellent job.

So while this movie might not be everyone’s cup of tea (as they say), I found it heartfelt and compelling. And if you’re willing to be confronted with issues such as rape, abuse, murder, abortion, and relationships among many others, For Colored Girls is fantastic. And even though I’m not included in the demographic under discussion, I did feel a sense of empowerment and community that awareness can bring.