Movie time in my house is a big thing. It provides the perfect space to snuggle up and connect over topical issues. It’s also a perfect opportunity to better understand your children’s world views when you all reflect on the experience.
My top picks for this year are THE HATE U GIVE and ROCKS
The hate u give plot centres around Starr Carter, a 16-year-old American girl who lives in the predominantly black neighbourhood of Garden Heights, but attends a predominantly white private school Williamson Prep.
After a gun goes off at a party Starr is attending, Starr is driven home by her childhood best friend, Khalil. While driving home, they are stopped by a police officer for failing to signal a lane change. I won’t give away the storyline, but it very much reflects many of the issues chronicled in the case of the George Floyd killing in Minneapolis- but through the experience of a child.
Starr is from a proud working class loving black family with a highly ambitious mother and doting father that has former ties to street gang culture. She straddles two tier racial dynamics of having to avoid being stereotyped by restricting aspects of her cultural identity while at school verses expectations of how she should behave (less white) to be accepted socially in the black neighbourhood of Garden Heights.
Starr goes on a painful journey of self discovery that see everything around her temporarily turned upside down while she grapples with the unfair reality of the devastating impact of racism and injustice.
The film is available to purchase on Amazon prime for £3.99. I recommend you get the DVD from Amazon or other stockists so that you can lend it to family and friends.
Rocks is a British coming-of-age drama film, directed by Sarah Gavron and released in 2019. The lead character Olushola, nicknamed "Rocks", a Black British teenage girl in London whose single mother abandons her and her younger brother Emmanuel forcing them to fend for themselves with the help of her loyal friend Sumaya and others. This hearth thumping, tear jerking drama causes you to develop a deep connection with Rocks as she navigates the difficulties of being a schoolgirl and guardian to her brother. You are transported into her immature mindset as she struggles to evade the consequences of social services taking them into care.
Her love for Emmanuel is heart-warming, but does she really have the skills to care for him? Her struggle to reconcile the rejection from her mother’s mental health condition with seeing other families thrive causes her to lash out at her best friend Sumaya when she needs her the most. The complexity of friendships and trust are pushed to the limit when she is unwittingly betrayed. This story shows that we’re not always aware of what is good for us, but we can overcome setbacks and learn how to make the best of it.
This film is available to watch on Netflix
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