A Lot of Nothing

I'm not sure where all those one-star ratings come from. This is an entertaining comedy of errors with an important premise. It has its flaws, but it's well-handled and well worth a little forgiveness. The acting is mostly competent, if not for the male lead. The production value is right up there, and the screenplay does a good job of carrying a number of different approaches to its political premise. I hope the director keeps evolving. I'll certainly watch more from him if he keeps churning them out.

My expectations were low given the ratings, but it's definitely not worthy of those one-star reviews.

Don't listen to the haters, I don't know where they're coming from (hate, probably, ha ha), but it's not right or fair to give this movie anything below a 6. It may not be a 10, but it's no 4.4 either. I'd say it actually deserves a solid 7, maybe even a 7.5 (that is, if this site permitted raters to use half-stars, which it doesn't, by the way, so I'm really curious as to who determines what these ratings are in the first place and how is it figured/tallied, because where does a ".4" even come from if the raters can only utilize whole numbers from 1-10?) So I put 10 stars up in an effort to get the balance right.

I'd say this is a pretty funny and entertaining dark comedy that hits on present day social concerns and prejudices, along with how people view and handle them, in a dark, kind of twisted, many times ironic and rather comic manner. And it feels pretty real.

Both the cast and the characters they played were great; the dialogue, expressions, and reactions were very true-to-life, I found myself thinking 'Wait, I know these people, don't I?' I especially liked Jamal, he was just spot on with it, his eyes and the looks he'd give... everyone, actually, was seriously on, Jamal just seemed to shine really bright.

The only gentle critique I could even give is that it did jump around a bit, but then that kind of seemed to go hand in hand with the story and characters anyways, so there you have it. I really liked that even though some of the issues being dealt with were intense (e.g., killer cops, racism, adultery), the movie didn't go the ho-hum blood and gore route, but was put together intelligently in a way to have it hit home without the need to smear the viewers' faces in a bunch of hard-core action hype, and thus, making it actually more impactual and driving the point(s) home hard amidst the humour. Check it out.

Mo McRae's directorial debut "A Lot of Nothing" tackles a sensitive and relevant topic - police killings of unarmed victims in the Black community. The film follows James and Vanessa, a wealthy Black couple, who perform their own twisted citizen's arrest after learning that their white neighbor and cop killed a kid. The film is audacious and creative in its cinematography and musical score. However, it falls short in its writing, as the characters are poorly developed and serve as mere soundboards for the film's proposed intelligence. The film's themes are not explored with meaningful depth, and the big reveal leaves the film's stance on race and social capital muddled. Despite its weaknesses, McRae shows promise in his direction and artistic capabilities.

A Lot Of Nothing begins with a shot. Vanessa watches the news. Her anger erupts while her husband, James, weary of the world's temperament, and perhaps with his wife's as well, seeks to deflect. But Vanessa wants - demands - that this time something has to be done. Will a Facebook post heavy with MLK quotes settle the matter? Or should an act of violence beget a violent reciprocation?

The first 17 minutes presents a single-shot, two-man performance about confronting, channeling, and ultimately grounding that rage. The remainder of the run time runs through a series of more complicated actions, most of which are heavy with cinematic posturing. However, the entire play hits with modern-day truths that are equally complex.

Written and directed by Mo McRae, A Lot of Nothing shows that James and Vanessa are not entirely wrong. Yet, neither are they completely right. James enjoys his position of power and can masterfully either feign ignorance or fume in silence. Vanessa is all righteous fury until her passions move too quickly and too far out in a place beyond where James' smooth-talking counseling can reach. Brian, the cop, hits all the right cliches, until he doesn't. The movie follows similarly.

Vanessa takes matters into her own hands and confronts Brian. Tensions, of course, escalate. As do actions. Maybe a little too quickly. Perhaps even unbelievably.

A Lot of Nothing is a hard drama with comedic-level misunderstandings about the racial divides and general mistrust that regrettably continue to exist. Mo McRae's movie starts the conversation, asks critical questions, but cannot seem to come up with a satisfying end note.

I think that when people ask for representation they are asking for that all around. Within the first 15 min you can tell that this is not a story written from the perspective of the characters. It is so hard to make it to the 30 min mark. From the dialogue to the acting.

If you are in the community I would not watch this movie. You will likely be offended. If you are a woman in the community. You are going to be offended as soon as you see Vanessa ( Cleopatra Coleman). From her hair (she needed a BW working on that fro), to her attitude, landing on how she speaks. You can clearly see how the writers view YOU as a human. It is another portrayal of you being seen as hysterical, illogical, jealous, unhinged, and weak. Topped off with submission in the face of the men that control the money.

Then there is James (Y'lan Noel). He is not in control and whines in lieu of taking control when his wife begins to come unhinged. She is clearly upset about a circumstance that involves their neighbor. He also allows her to take over the situation until it gets to the point of no return.

I was done and could no longer continue when Jamal (Shamier Anderson) comes into the picture. The first offensive remark is around 45 min when he is at the door with his pregnant wife/gf. His brother James and his sister in law are deciding if they should open the door. James confesses to Vanessa that he has given his brother a key. Her response, " What kind of emergency? In case we run out of rolling papers."

I made it to the 50 min mark before it was too much to continue. I had a feeling who would write a woman of the community this way. I had to take a look and was laughing...like, of course. I looked at the director. If you know him...you know him. I was like... of course.

If you like Insecure, White Famous or Stowaway, save yourself the time. Do not watch. You are going to be upset at how these actors have been reduced.