'The Blackening Doesn't Last Beyond Its Premise's Novelty
A humourous but familiar comedy that isn't as clever as it lets out to be. The Blackening plays like a comedy sketch with over-the-top performances and slapstick antics. It's an overtly comedic Get Out with less production value that lands some laughs yet slips on others. The idea is funny but nothing wiser beyond an In Living Color skit. The movie plays things so over the top it generates cringeworthy jokes and performances. Why is Clifton (Jermaine Fowler) talking out the side of his mouth like he's Sylvester Stallone or Dick Cheney? Also, why is he speaking in the phony black guy pretending to be a white guy voice? As a comedy, Jermain Fowler's character works for the material to an extent, even if his phony white guy accent is intentionally corny, as the movie looks like a knockoff of Get Out and plays like a Scary Movie parody of Saw.
The Blackening is stylistically shot in a serious tone. Much of the environment is under-exposed to present an uneven feeling. Sometimes the film was too dark, and I had to squint to see what was on the screen. Despite its dark cinematography, the movie presents itself in a very light tone to play against convention. The humor is topical but could be more memorable.
Director Tim Story is the man behind Barber Shop, a similar comedy in nuance about race that's appropriately meant to be seen with a crowd. The ads for The Blackening reinforces my point where in one trailer, the movie cuts from punchlines to audiences filmed via night vision within a darkened theater reacting with laughter, screams, and even finger snaps. It's funny and meant to be shared between all races for a communal experience you can't get from home. I felt like a grouch who could merely chuckle within a packed audience that laughed at the right moments as if an audience applause sign was flashing in front of them.
The Blackening is an amusing but redundant gag that overstays its welcome. The premise is funny. What if you have a slasher where everyone is black? How would that break the conventions of a typical slasher? According to this movie, the answer is to still play conventions. When the villain reveals themself, the film ends on a predictable note similar to the villain's motivation in The Incredibles, where petulance and isolation drove the antagonist towards madness. The story is similar to any slasher.
When Allison (Grace Byers) travels to a remote cabin with a group of eight eccentric friends on a camping trip, things go from weird to bad fast. The friends find a room within their cabin called "game room." Inside is a Ouija board type of game called The Blackening. The main compass is navigated by a creepy face that looks like a white actor doing blackface. It's like the black version of the Jigwaw puppet. A muffled voice from the face speaks to the game's players, informing them that if they play by the rules, they can all hopefully get out alive.
Whether the players wanted to participate was not their choice. The only decision-maker is The Blackening Game Board. Disobeying its rules can result in sudden death. What's supposed to be a fun vacation turns into an all-black slasher where nobody is the single black friend who dies first amongst a white cast. The idea is funny, but it doesn't have enough legs beyond its novelty.
The Blackening is an ensemble piece where there's no singular protagonist. Some characters are more charismatic than others, while others are forgettable. There's the gay friend, Dewayne (Dewayne Perkins), the straight-weight-pumping bro friend, Nnamdi (Sinqua Walls), who doesn't get along with Dewayne. There's Clifton, who's the nerdy black friend who could audibly pass off as white. Then there's everyone else, none of which are very memorable within an already overstuffed film.
Having eight characters at once leaves little room to build upon anyone other than being potential slasher bate. The most interesting characters are the ones the film centralizes much of its focus on. However, the movie's slasher genre has a formulaic build-up that only delivers light on the kills and is heavy on the subversive material that grows stale within the film's length. It's a case of getting the humor, then wanting to move past the premise.
On-screen, everyone is having a good time. Perhaps too good of a time where the movie feels rushed. There's work done in the editing room that makes some of the picture look slapped together, from choppy cuts between characters to a lazy opening credit slide that looks like it was done at the last minute. Since the film is a parody, many could say that it doesn't matter but humbug to that, I want to see some clean cuts. From a slapped-together delivery to a rushed ending,
The Blackening is a clever, if not necessarily wise, parody. Not everything needs to be the level of Get Out. There's room for race-driven goofball comedies. This one is dull as only some of its characters are memorable. It's a typical horror comedy that delivers laughs but not many that garner more than a chuckle.
