Shoot the Messenger

My initial reactions were;

Negative feedback:

1)The writer invented black characters just to try and "prove" a point (e.g. the daughter of the Christian woman with 5 kids from 5 fathers, and also the girl looking for a job and asking about maternity leave). They didn't actually have anything to do with the storyline, and just existed so he could turn his nose up at them. The black on black shooting also had very little point to it, and was just there to "prove" a point.

2)The writer deliberately squeezed in forced levels of negative black stereotypes - trying too hard to provoke.

3) The only redeeming black character (his girlfriend) wasn't given a strong enough voice to actually put forward a counter argument (and making her have 'hair issues' was a real cop out!!).

4) Lots of the negative behaviour from black people was way over the top and unbelievable or even petty (e.g. when the guy in the job centre kicked over the bin when the main guy was cleaning up. I couldn't see that happening.)

5) No wider context of the situation. E.g. He said he was the only teacher who cared about the black kids, but the film didn't attempt to show how the white teachers didn't care. So resulted in all the black characters looking bad, and all the white character were helpful or good.

6) Lots of statements just put in there to shock - such as when he said they should bring back slavery. Again that had no real use in the storyline, and was only there to shock and provoke.

Positive feedback

1) Well filmed and acted >Interesting how even when he still hated black people he could embrace the black church. (the stuff of very loaded debate! ha, ha, ha )

2) Important issue raised of how heavy handedness and harsh treatment of ourselves may be counter productive.(The moment of realisation of mistakes for the main character)

3) There were a couple of funny moments and gave the ability to laugh at ourselves without self hatred, but unfortunately they were hugely overshadowed by far too many moments of self hatred.

4) Quite strong ending.

Overall I wasn't as offended as I thought I would be, but I do think there was a far less exploitative way of exploring the same issues. Apparently the BBC sent her back the script a couple of times saying it wasn't bad or shocking enough. The writer got seduced by that attention, and unfortunately that "trying to shock" factor has got in the way of what could have been an important debate for the black community. It tried to tackle every issue and bit off more than it could chew. I feel the main character was just living through the experiences of the writer Sharon Foster, and not, as she claims, putting an honest mirror to the black community. A lot of the things in there, I felt, were her issues, not anyone else's.

Really, anyone who thinks this film is racist clearly has no capacity to look beyond the blatantly obvious and try to understand the real meaning of this stunning story. The fact that a film maker can be so bold and provocative as to verbalise the issues that are explored, and really go deeper into the race question than just "he's wrong he's right", and that someone can ignore political correctness and risk offending people in order to really get down to the gritty issues behind racism and race stereotyping is a testament to what can be done with film these days. I think that this is an intelligent, important and very brave piece of work, that will undoubtedly incur criticism, but that at the very least will remind people that race IS still an issue and that it requires more thought and understanding than is generally applied to it. I think that this is as cinematically close to Studs Terkel as possible.

it's funny... i've come to the realization that black folks in the UK just weren't ready for Shoot the Messenger. i had a long debate with a black filmmaker when we were both shooting in Ethiopia recently, and i just read the feedback given by the other commenter... i'm sorry, but growing up in Babylon as someone from the African Diapora... we are taught to hate ourselves. period. it's the best way to keep a people dysfunctional in a society that is built to exploit them as a source of cheap labor or preferably as a slave workforce incarcerated in prisons. here in the us... black folks suffer from deep self hatred and confusion of our Afrcan roots... but we can also laugh at it. our films have addressed it lightly... Dave Chapelle has really got into it... Paul Mooney, Richard Pryor.. the list goes on. Shoot the Messenger plays with stereotypes perhaps, but really uses comedy to address the serious issue of self hatred. it's really well written and brilliantly directed. i saw it at the tribeca film festival a few years ago, and have been trying hard to get a copy ever since. there was a lot of outrage in the UK, because folks out there can't deal with their self hatred... sorry, but it's real. i'm dealing with mine everyday. We all need a lot of healing, but if you look at this film for what it is... i think you'll find that it's very well done because it has folks asking themselves important questions about identity, racism, self hatred... i think it's a spark for the kind of self realization that we need to evolve mentally and spiritually. i give it ten stars.

This is surprisingly strong and engaging movie. Usually when a commercial production delves into highly charged topics, such as race, the results can be less than pleasing. However, this movie is an exception. Utilizing an almost documentary-like format, the deals with issues such as racism, self-hate and emotional trauma. Skillfully directed by Ngozi Onwurah, this movie dramatizes what can happen when hatred is turned inward. The performances are excellent. But what makes this particularly effective is that it presents a story that is not contrived, that deals with real issues, and does so without relying on cinematic gimmicks like special effects or becoming preachy. The themes in this story resonates with the audience and for that reason alone this movie is worth watching. This movie deals squarely with the theme of self-hate: its etiology and manifestations. In this movie the dialog is candid,, unambiguous and strong. Characters are forced to call into question their own sense of worth, their own sense of identity and come to terms with who they are, and who they think they are. The main character is heroic, yet he is flawed hero, who experiences his own personal odyssey of self-discovery. What makes this movie so brilliant is the fundamental simplicity of the story. There is no complicated, convoluted plot, no pseudo-philosophical sophistry; what is portrayed is done so plainly and clearly. The world is a complicated place but that doesn't mean a movie has to be complicated. Profound themes do not need to be obscured by special effects or overly wordy scripts. This movie is proof of that.

STAR RATING: ***** Jodie Marsh **** Michelle Marsh *** Kym Marsh ** Rodney Marsh * Hackney Marsh

Joe Pescale (David Oyelowo) used to have a good job in IT but gave it all up to become a teacher and try to turn around the lives of the disadvantaged black kids he was teaching. He is the only black teacher in a school of predominantly black kids but he soldiers on regardless trying to make a difference. But it all goes wrong one day when he taps a troublesome pupil named Gemal (David Mnee) on the shoulder, which he blows out of proportion, costing him his job and the venomous spurn of the black community. After a lot of heckling and spurn, he becomes a paranoid recluse and starts imagining that all black people are evil and are out to get him.

As if to whip up controversy like a jelly cake, the original title of the film was going to be F*ck Black People before the conservative BBC decided that would be just a little too provocative and toned it down to the title we have. The film sparked a lot of outrage anyway and was even branded outright BNP propaganda. I can see how people drew this conclusion, as the film plays at times like a none stop rundown of all the various different bad aspects of black culture and the black community, from promiscuous single mothers with many different kids from different fathers to gun crime and failure in the school system. I can see how some may see it as depressing viewing, but I must say I never saw it this way. It's all played in a gritty, pull no punches way but it compels and enlightens you rather than weighing you down. And it's helped no end by Oyelowo in the lead role. The Spooks star delivers a fantastic performance, perfectly conveying paranoia and depression but also giving the film an energetic, enlightening and wryly humorous lead character who focuses on all the negative aspects of his culture in an angry and frustrated but also gleefully cynical way and even offers something of a tip on how things could change. The supporting cast also all shine in smaller roles but as he is carrying the film, he is the main player in making it what it is.

Powerful and hard-hitting, then, and certainly likely to offend some, but it's all (Like it or hate it) true and offers some tough food for thought for all the problems in the black community and the issues it needs to address. ****