Written for the Screen & Directed By Cord Jefferson; Starring Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams, Adam Brody, Keith David, Issa Rae, and Sterling K. Brown.
Based on Percival Everett’s 2001 novel titled Erasure, American Fiction follows Thelonious 'Monk' Ellison (Jeffrey Wright), a frustrated novelist who’s tired of the offensive tropes in Black entertainment. To prove his point, he writes his own outlandish book that propels him into the heart of hypocrisy and madness he claims to disdain. This marks the directorial debut for Cord Jefferson, who previously worked as a writer on quite a few TV shows such as Master of None, The Good Place, Succession, and Station Eleven. He also won an Emmy in 2020 for the HBO miniseries Watchmen.
It’s truly astonishing that this is Jefferson’s very first directing credit on anything. He has a very tricky tone to balance out. This movie is not only funny a lot of the time, but also very endearing a lot of the time. I thought Cord Jefferson absolutely nailed that. He also pulls off a couple of imaginative sequences. Hilda Rasula’s editing is definitely paced just right where the whole thing just moves along without overstaying its welcome. Laura Karpman’s musical score I also found to be pretty tender.
From his television work on Angels in America and Westworld to his involvement in big movie franchises like James Bond and The Hunger Games, I’ve always enjoyed Jeffrey Wright as a character actor. In a rare leading role for him, he gives a really compelling performance. It’s also really easy to relate what he goes through over the course of the film. I liked some of the supporting turns from Tracee Ellis Ross as Monk's sister, Lisa, Erika Alexander as his girlfriend, Coraline, and Leslie Uggams as his mother, Agnes. Although Sterling K. Brown is easily a standout with such memorable work here as Monk's brother, Cliff.
I’m usually not the biggest fan of comedies. I tend to enjoy them most when they’re doing more than just trying to be funny. With American Fiction, I not only laughed at all the right parts with the audience, but I also appreciated it for having quite a bit of heart. A feel good film with some clever social commentary. No doubt I had a really good time with this one. If it happens to be playing at a theater near you, I think you should check it out.
Rating: 4/5
Based on Percival Everett’s 2001 novel titled Erasure, American Fiction follows Thelonious 'Monk' Ellison (Jeffrey Wright), a frustrated novelist who’s tired of the offensive tropes in Black entertainment. To prove his point, he writes his own outlandish book that propels him into the heart of hypocrisy and madness he claims to disdain. This marks the directorial debut for Cord Jefferson, who previously worked as a writer on quite a few TV shows such as Master of None, The Good Place, Succession, and Station Eleven. He also won an Emmy in 2020 for the HBO miniseries Watchmen.
It’s truly astonishing that this is Jefferson’s very first directing credit on anything. He has a very tricky tone to balance out. This movie is not only funny a lot of the time, but also very endearing a lot of the time. I thought Cord Jefferson absolutely nailed that. He also pulls off a couple of imaginative sequences. Hilda Rasula’s editing is definitely paced just right where the whole thing just moves along without overstaying its welcome. Laura Karpman’s musical score I also found to be pretty tender.
From his television work on Angels in America and Westworld to his involvement in big movie franchises like James Bond and The Hunger Games, I’ve always enjoyed Jeffrey Wright as a character actor. In a rare leading role for him, he gives a really compelling performance. It’s also really easy to relate what he goes through over the course of the film. I liked some of the supporting turns from Tracee Ellis Ross as Monk's sister, Lisa, Erika Alexander as his girlfriend, Coraline, and Leslie Uggams as his mother, Agnes. Although Sterling K. Brown is easily a standout with such memorable work here as Monk's brother, Cliff.
I’m usually not the biggest fan of comedies. I tend to enjoy them most when they’re doing more than just trying to be funny. With American Fiction, I not only laughed at all the right parts with the audience, but I also appreciated it for having quite a bit of heart. A feel good film with some clever social commentary. No doubt I had a really good time with this one. If it happens to be playing at a theater near you, I think you should check it out.
Rating: 4/5