Is It Okay for a White Actress To Darken Her Skin for a Role?
Filed under: Drama, Casting, Cannes, Critical Thought, Celebrities and Controversy, Politics
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In yesterday's review of A Mighty Heart, filed from the Cannes fest, James brought up a topic that I haven't given much thought to, but other people apparently have. Angelina Jolie's portrayal of Marianne Pearl in the film, for whatever emotional and preparational challenges it presented, also required Jolie to curl her hair and 'brown' her skin in order to accurately reflect Pearl's Afro-Cuban/French heritage. Most reviews being filed from the fest seem to reflect what James pointed out -- that it's not considered a big deal. As James wrote, "there's nothing insensitive or overdone in the mild make-up artistry of the part; the inner performance is what shines out." The press also realizes, I'm sure, that Jolie had a lot to do with shepherding this project into production and is the film's biggest selling point, so they wouldn't raise the pointless question of 'Couldn't the producers have found someone else to play Pearl?' I wonder, though -- would the press reaction be different if this were a fictional character? What if someone considerably fairer than Jolie, like Nicole Kidman, had taken the part and gone through the same make-up job?
There's also a sort of flip-side to the coin. During a recent press junket for her latest film, Perfect Stranger, Halle Berry talked candidly about her upcoming project, Class Act, a true story about a teacher who runs for congress. The teacher is white. "She's just this teacher who ran for public office," Berry told the press, "and that's a step in the right direction for me, because I've been fighting to just be seen as a woman and not always have my color precede me, so when [the producer] said 'wouldn't this be a great role for you?' I said 'you should ask her. Maybe she doesn't want her story portrayed by a black woman.' And she loved the idea."
These are weighty issues that can only be hashed out by the Cinematical readers, so I'll leave it to you -- what do you think about actors using makeup to alter their race for films, or simply taking on the roles of real people who are of a different race and not doing any makeup work?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-23-2007 @ 3:55PM
Scott K said...
If there is a role based on a real person or previously established character, then make-up like this is fine. Hiring someone of the same race as the person or character might be a better solution, but there isn't anything wrong with accurately portraying a person/character's race.
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5-23-2007 @ 4:08PM
Kevin said...
Who cares? They're actors, to imply that one is only suitable for the role if their real life persona actually represents the character in question is silly. For overweight characters directors should only hire overweight actors. How about for The Machinist, in which Christian Bale shrank down to nearly invisible weight. Was it inappropriate not to have hired an anorexic male for that role. What matters is the actors ability to bring forth the essence of the character itself. Other than that, who cares how they look, talk, move, etc. in real life?
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5-23-2007 @ 4:10PM
Garett said...
So long as it's all not a new method of using blackface to abstain from using actors of all races, then it should be fine. I support Jolie here. Just the same, I enjoyed "Memoirs of a Geisha," though its primary actors were Chinese.
The ideas in films are what are important, not necessarily the techniques used behind the scenes. If you want to get really technical, should we be upset that Spielberg did not really use dinosaurs in "Jurassic Park"?
The suspension of disbelief is what the filmmakers need to maintain, and should they take an extra step here and there to do so in a nondescriminatory way, then I say, "Be my guest."
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5-23-2007 @ 5:17PM
Cath said...
It's not a question of suspension of disbelief, it's the effort to accurately represent reality as much as possible within the confines of the system. Actors of underrepresented heritages have a hard time finding decent parts to begin with, as most roles are cast for whites and males, so that when a role does come by that's up that minority actor's own street, it hurts that the actor won't even be considered for it. I have a friend who is Central Asian and experiences this bitter irony all the time. The recent PBS special on the restrictions for Asian actors in American cinema handled this subject rather well.
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5-24-2007 @ 2:07AM
Diego said...
If some other actor had taken the role, the question of "why not hire someone of that heritage" might be stronger. But being that this is a fairly solemn film, a message film of sorts, Jolie, being the good actor that she's sometimes forgotten to be, can bring the kind of gravity and star power to an otherwise difficult film. This isn't entirely new in Hollywood, certainly it's less of a stretch than some other actors with some other roles.
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5-26-2007 @ 5:16PM
michele said...
Who cares I won't go to see it any way. Joile is part French, so it's not a total stretch. I just hope noone wants Monique to play the part of lets say Julie Andrews in a remake of "The Sound of Music"
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