Lovers Rock (2020)

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Lovers Rock Movie Poster

Lovers Rock is a British romance movie and it is the first movie from the "Small Axe" anthology series from the director Steve McQueen. Mangrove, Red White and Blue, Alex Wheatle and Education are the other one. This movie released on 22 November 2020 (United Kingdom) and 27 November 2020 (United States). This 68 minutes movie tells about a Notting Hill house party in 1980 and named for a romantic genre of reggae, the film celebrates the gatherings that Black people, unwelcome in white nightclubs, created for themselves.[1] It starring

  • Micheal Ward as Franklyn Cooper
  • Amarah-Jae St. Aubyn as Martha Trenton
  • Kedar Williams-Stirling as Clifton
  • Shaniqua Okwok as Patty
  • Ellis George as Cynthia
  • Francis Lovehall as Reggie

Plot

This film begins with the ladies who are cooking in the kitchen. They suddenly break into song as they chop and simmer. It's a tender lover's poem, a capella, with a high note that one of the women nails with pride while the other two softly fade. They look at the overachiever in their midst, pointing to her as if to say, "OK, Miss Thing, we're going to give you that." As they joke, two gentlemen are moving around the furniture in the house. One stops teasing the chefs, presumably to make sure they have the right to some of the good food they're cooking. Maybe he's their brother, or a neighborhood comedian who's fun to be around even in the most desperate situations.His partners call for him to return to his duties, then when the camera cuts out two large speakers in a van, we realize that everyone is preparing for a house party.

A House Party

One of the party's guests, Martha is the first to be seen trying to sneak out of her window. Before she plops into the frame, we hear a drop to the ground, followed by sounds of struggle as she performs her escape. Mission accomplished, she meets Patti, her best girl, who seems to have been shocked that Martha has managed to climb out of a second story window wearing those shoes. They compare the dresses under their trench coats, the clothes they probably made themselves. Then they catch the bus and meet at the door of the house "The Doorman," a very large Rasta whose voice is as deep as your respect for him should be. He's the only bouncer of the party, and considering how many people show up for this soiree.

Patti and Martha are quickly cornered by two men, one of whom has a macho game of entitlement. After he's deservedly disrespected, the other guy, Franklyn saves the encounter by making compliments to the ladies' ego. Flattery is going to get you everywhere, you know. But when it seems that Martha has gotten the better end of the deal by hitting it off with Franklyn, Patti gets pissed off and leaves the party. Martha sees her storming out of the window of the bathroom. Having witnessed this party, all I can say is gurl, you should have stayed!

Pro

Kadeem Ramsay (right) plays the DJ at Steve MQueen’s recreation of a blues party

In the movie potrays how Black londoners still can go to the club and enjoy the music even though they are not welcome in the clubs because they were Black so they make their own clubs.[2] There is a scene shows one such night in 1980, when a few hundred Black Londoners gathered at a house party to keep each other close and sway and thrash and grind. This movie is a dreamy collection of party scenes; it's a passionate, and restless accomplishment. In little movements affection, anger, togetherness are communicated and "Lovers Rock shows what happens when white people aren’t looking — the rapture in Black joy, experienced privately."[3] Lovers Rock also depicts how Black people fell the freedom from whiteness, and the freedom from discrimination.[4]

Reference