Le Voyageur Noir

After watching a few short films made by university students and some Oscar winning shorts, I have observed that the films that win acclaim mostly fix its entire scope on a singular event and generally elevate the movie to a level where one presumes he or she has guessed the ending only to be deceived with a climax that is highly unexpected yet totally believable and (forgive me for using this word but I still have the teenager in me) awesome!

When a black man is humiliated on a train for an extended period of time by an elderly woman and there is a supporting focus on a third character, we always tend to assume the third character comes to focus in the end. I had a feeling that the guy would suddenly face the woman and ask her to control herself. Or say the child sitting opposite would kick the lady. Or if the director goes for a Scary Movie ending, then all the passengers would get up and stab that hag to death. But the ending will be a surprise no one would have guessed.

The thing that fetched it the Oscar, apart from its plot, is the irony in the title. Not many movies have so cleverly named their film.

My Rating: 8 out of 10

The label "fare dodger" would be an undeserved kindness with this senior citizen, her with her atrocious thoughts on the crowded bus, saying them out loud like an unsolicited salesperson, except far more deplorable.

It was not unwatchable; the climax no doubt garners some relieved sighs, consorting chuckles , and maybe even a few righteous cheers. But it was discomfiting and disrespectful. Racism is fine as a theme to examine, but as far as entertainment and viewing experience goes, if one decides to be explicitly offensive, make it worth it. The balance in this short film was uneven, something that felt like 90 percent vulgarity and racial slurs, ignorance on full display with little interaction (bystander effect, anyone?), with less than a minute to feel the satisfying revenge.

Some audiences might be less effected and therefore more tolerant of the repeated, unchecked discriminative and racist comments turned monologue from this ignorant and insolent old lady, but others will no doubt agree that is was not worth the wait.

It is not so often that a film is made which incites viewers to fight against racism. This is due to the fact that most films about racism tend to be overtly soft in their outlook as they make it a point to avoid unnecessary controversies. At this point it needs to be told that it is a relief that German director Didi Danquart's Oscar winning short film "Schwarzfahrer" (Black Rider) decides to tackle racism head-on. By opting for a full scale frontal confrontation, this film manages to ruffle many feathers as it shows how racist can a person get in a public situation. It is not only the issue of racism which is bothersome and ironical but what bothers the most is the apathy of other people who choose to ignore it as if they would never be affected by the scourge of racism. From a linguistic/philosophical point of view, Schwarzfahrer has a lot of hidden meanings too as it features a black man in a situation involving the color 'black' (Schwarz) and 'travelling' (Fahren) as the German language term 'Schwarzfahren' denotes usage of services without paying for them. A layman might be in the wrong to interpret it as a film about a black person enjoying a free ride on public transport in Germany. However, it is only an intellectually challenged viewer who would make that move as the film concerns a batty old white woman's racist blabber against a trendy, taciturn, young, black man who has the last laugh on her. It is being said that it just takes a single, strong, powerful blow to counter hundreds of small barbs. This is exactly what happens in this film. Lastly, Schwarzfahrer is the ideal film for those who want their meaningful cinema to do something to change other people's lives.

Rather than rupture himself trying to start his motorbike, a gent (Stefan Merki) decides to just get the tram. Safely ensconced, he sees a young black lad (Paul Outlaw) board and ask an elderly lady (Senta Moira) if the vacant seat next to her is free. After a disdainful glance, she ignores him but he sits down anyway. What now ensues sees her indulge herself in a serious, out loud, moan to the whole carriage that illustrates quite effectively just how bigoted and out of touch this woman is. Initially, the fellow passengers just nod and smile, but gradually they tune out and are subsequently distracted by an other passenger whose headphones are a bit noisy but nowhere near as offensive. Then the ticket inspector gets on and, well you know what they say about vengeance being sweet? Well here it's a bit inky, too! It's a gentle indictment of apathy, of keeping your head down and a stronger one of entrenched attitudes that say much more about their speaker than their intended target, but in the end there is a distinctly satisfying vindication that did make me smile.

So people are falling all over themselves saying how great this little film is. Really? Because the best way to eradicate racism is to act in ways which confirm racist stereotypes?

Needless to say, I disagree with the praise heaped on this short work, which I frankly found rather petty. The old lady probably has tons of issues, but even if you want to categorically denounce her as a racist, how does the Schwarzfahrer's behavior do anything to help improve the situation of other black persons? Answer: it does not. (Just like virtue signaling, which accomplishes nothing beyond allowing the person emoting to feel smugly superior to those whom they denounce.)

So the guy gets a short-term feeling of revenge. Big deal. It helps no one. Why? Because the lady will just regale all of her racist friends with the tale of how one of these horrible immigrants did her wrong. And she will not be telling a lie. Then they will all take this sort of anecdote and run with it, embellishing and perpetuating all of the racial stereotypes which they have long held. They all have their stories. This is how to start one, not to eradicate racism.