Naked Acts

Jake-Ann Jones is the third generation of women to be an actress. She's just starting out, and imperils her role when she refuses to appear naked on the stage, playing an artist's model. Her refusal makes sense in that she has lost 57 pounds, and she apparent has body dysmorphia. But as the movie proceeds, her reasons become more complicated.

It's an interestingly written and beautifully performed study with some interesting casting, including Rene Cox as the photographer. She was the center of controversy at the time. An exhibition of her photographs included one in which she appeared as Jesus; apparently some people thought he should look like Flemish painters.

Despite being well shot and edited as a movie, I was left with the impression this was actually a very well filmized version of a stage play.

Naked Acts is a refreshing look at African American arts. The main star, Cicely, was a very complex character with loads of emotional conflict, which makes for a very interesting piece to watch. Very artistic work, in nature. Kudos to Bridgett Davis for an exceptional film debut!

This is one of the best films I've seen about a woman not even just a black woman a young woman trying to deal with her internal issues in this external world. It was a great movie done on atiny budget. I feel like that when a film has a black director and black stars unless there's something that they can kind of put into a box like a spike Lee movie or Tyler Perry movie the films get lost. This movie was better than a lot of those movies I've seen. I wish more people knew about it. It tells a story of a young black woman dealing with her past, and to have a future in business like her mother did, but on her own terms, you see her struggle with her demons and it's really beautiful.

I saw a recently restored print of this on TCM. A black woman who has lost an incredible amount of weight over the years. She wants to be an actress but her first job involves her taking her clothes off. She refuses seeing it as exploitive. It leads to her discussing with her friends (male and female) whether she should do it. It leads to some fascinating discussions on gender politics and a woman's role in society. It's finally revealed at the end why she was so fat in the first place and a secret she was trying to cover up.

It LOOKS fantastic, has great acting and a sharp, insightful script. One of the best indie films ever made!