While Internet fires continue to rage after Barbie visionaries Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie did not get nominated for Best Director and Best Actress respectively, Cord Jefferson’s directorial debut, American Fiction, quietly over-performed with five Oscar nominations. Supporting Actor was a little unexpected, and Score was a total surprise, indicating broader strength and support for the film.

The relatively small dramedy, adapted from Percival Everett’s novel, Erasure, follows a professor and fiction writer named Thelonious “Monk” Ellison as he struggles to write a best seller because, according to his editor, his books aren’t “Black” enough. While attending a conference in his hometown of Boston (woot woot!), Monk realizes that he must take on more of a role in the family he has, up until then, kept at arm’s length. The critically acclaimed film won the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival, where it premiered, and it is currently playing in theaters everywhere. It will be available to buy at home on February 6. With Amazon MGM Studios as its distributor the film will presumably stream on Amazon Prime Video at a later date. 

During this episode of The Long Take Review, Greg and I discuss how the film engages with issues of race, identity, representation, inclusivity, authenticity, commercialism, classism, genre, and literary taste. We also realize that American Fiction has more in common with Barbie than one might think, as we reference attitudes towards Greta Gerwig’s elevated box office juggernaut on several occasions. Tune in to find out why.

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Movie News Update Greg shares his takes on the Oscars and we tackle the post-nominations Barbie discourse. 4:37

The Short Take We each share our general impressions of American Fiction. A brief Jeffrey Wright lovefest ensues. 18:35

The Recommendation Algorithm Why is this an awards movie that cinephiles can recommend to more of their friends? 28:54

SPOILER MODE What is this film actually trying to say about racial stereotypes? About American fiction? And what was that ending all about? 35:28

The Rhetorical Situation What does the literary component of this story add to the discussion of race and cultural representation? How do the issues debated in the film apply to the teaching of academic writing? This one has a lot for the writing teachers out there! 1:17:12

Oscars Watch American Fiction has been nominated for five Academy Awards. Can it win any of them? 1:31:39

Image Credit: Vox

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