Review: ‘Antebellum’
There is a scene in ‘Antebellum’, the feature film debut of Gerard Bush and Christopher Renz, that feels especially relevant today. In it, main character Veronica (Janelle Monae) stands in front of a statue commemorating American confederate general Robert E. Lee. As she stares at it, a wide range of moods flash across her face – from confusion to grief to exasperation and finally defiance. It is truly a powerful moment, one that perfectly encapsulates the frustrations many across the world have been feeling these past few months in regards to the erection of statues and monuments that honor racist figures. Art has long been used as a medium to reflect the political and social landscape of our times. ‘Antebellum’ could have been a defining work of art that perfectly captures the turmoil and dislocations of the specific era we are living in today. Unfortunately, the power and weight of that specific scene are undone by the clunkiness of the rest of the film.
‘Antebellum’ centers on author and motivational speaker Veronica Henley (Monae), a highly successful and happily married public figure who embarks on a business trip to deliver a talk on intersectional feminism and misogynoir alongside two of her best friends (Gabourey Sidibe and Lily Cowles). Elsewhere, a woman named Eden (also played by Monae) finds herself trapped in a nightmarish reality at the mercy of a captor (Eric Lange) who will stop at nothing to keep her in his grasp.
In a new age of social and political thrillers, kicked off by Jordan Peele’s Academy Award nominated ‘Get Out’ – which coincidentally shares a producer with ‘Antebellum’, a connection that the marketing for the film has been attempting to capitalize on – Bush and Renz’s film had a lot of expectations placed on it the minute its much-hyped trailer debuted last year. Immediately drawing comparisons to ‘Get Out’ and Peele’s 2019 follow-up ‘Us’, ‘Antebellum’ has been widely regarded as one of the most anticipated films of the year, its teaser and trailer drawing a combined 13 million views on YouTube. While Bush and Renz’s film manages to capture the same surreal and stylized nature of Peele’s critically acclaimed films, it’s unfortunately sorely lacking in the layers and substance that made those movies so successful.
Opening with a harrowing, hyper-stylized tracking shot depicting the brutal murder of a woman attempting to flee from a plantation, ‘Antebellum’ wastes no time in forcing its audience to pay attention. It is a perturbing, disturbing scene, one that will linger in viewers’ minds long after the credits roll. Unfortunately, by introducing its characters at the height of their plight, ‘Antebellum’ forfeits the opportunity to explore their backgrounds or give them any defining traits other than their struggles, doing a real disservice to the actors who all deliver fantastic performances. “Our responsibility to the movie-going audience is to thrillingly entertain,” said Bush in a recent interview with Screen Rant. “And if you don’t do that, then you’re just finger-wagging and preachy. We have no interest in that; we find that particular mode of storytelling to be really abhorrent. For me, you’re holding people hostage rather than putting them in a space where they feel like you really cared enough to take them on a journey, an experience and a ride.” The issue is that ‘Antebellum’, at least in its first act, is neither thrilling nor entertaining. With its brutal and horrific depiction of slavery, it is quite a difficult film to watch. When you remove all of the nuance and all of the narrative complexity from such heavy and traumatic scenes, all you’re left with is a movie that practically borders on torture porn.
While both ‘Get Out’ and ‘Us’ (and other recent social thrillers such as Leigh Whannell’s ‘The Invisible Man’) were incredibly thrilling and entertaining, they also had a lot to say in regards to their subject matter, delivering themes and messages on casual racism, classism and toxic relationships. ‘Antebellum’ instead relies on shock factor and disturbing imagery to leave an impression, wasting an impeccable performance from Monae in the process. Bush and Renz do their absolute best to turn the recent romanticization of Antebellum imagery on its head, depicting the stark realities of what went on in the plantations that have since been transformed into museums and wedding venues. A subplot involving a character named Elizabeth (Jena Malone, who casts a large shadow over the film despite her minimal screentime) also attempts to shed some light on how racism and bigotry can be passed down from generation to generation, but just like the rest of the movie, it is too under-baked to truly make an impact. Unfortunately, by leaving character growth and development on the backburner, all we’re left with is an unpleasant experience that ultimately feels exploitative – even if that might not have been the filmmakers’ intention.
‘Antebellum’ is not a bad movie – it is incredibly well directed and phenomenally acted – but with a bit more thought and care put into its screenplay, it could have truly been a good one. There is clearly an abundance of passion and conviction bubbling under the film’s surface but a lack of nuance and narrative focus wastes it, making ‘Antebellum’ a muddled, frustrating experience to sit through.
Rating: ★★★☆☆
‘Antebellum’ will be available on PVOD on September 18, 2020.