The blinding splendor of ancient African kingdoms seems lost in modern Hollywood cinema. The portrayed images of Black people are often erroneous. Blacks are depicted as the stereotypical “sidekick,” the “local color”, or other exoticized characters. Film has the power to act as a mechanical “eye”, and is taken for face-value reality for many; this misinterpretations are believed easily by those who have had little interaction with the portrayed persons. A perfect example of this phenomenon is the confusion surrounding the movie King Kong. When this film about a giant gorilla was introduced to the United States in year?, very few Americans had had any contact with Africans. This film provided many Americans with their first glimpse of the inhabitants of the “Dark Continent.” Millions of Americans entered movie theatres to be met by non-English speaking, half-naked, nose-ring bearing “natives” that were portrayed as barbaric, lacking culture and morals, and frig
However, in all faces of oppression, there has been fierce resistance. Like country in Africa that resisted oppression, Black filmmakers have countered the portrayal of the “dominant eye” by utilizing an “oppositional gaze” in their films that offers an unapologetic, realistic view of Blacks that has been omitted from many Hollywood cinematic endeavors. These filmmakers understand the fact that Africana people are diverse and colorful people with an array of cultures, histories, beliefs and ideologies (change); these beliefs are reflected in the films created by these filmmakers.
What happens to a dream deferred? (find the rest of the poem)
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