Black History Month 2013 Day 4

Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner/Guess Who

Cultural Significance:

I believe　that　these　two　films　really　reflected　the　times　in　which　we　were　living　in　when　each　film　was made. Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner? starred Sidney Poitier and was made in 1967. His fiancé was white and she took him home to meet the family. Guess Who starred Ashton Kutcher and was made in 2005. His fiancé was black and she took him home to meet the family.

1967 was a time when interracial relationships were frowned upon no matter the union, but the content of the film focused on a black man marrying a white woman. The film was set up under the premise that Sidney Poitier was the perfect man for the young woman. He was a doctor, came from a good family, and really loved her; however, he was black. This film was able to take a serious look at an issue that has become more common in recent years and show that love can prevail. Now, it is a Hollywood story and didn’t magically change the world, but it did start these conversations and give interracial couples confidence to be more open regarding their love and relationship.



2005 was a time when interracial relationships were a lot more common, but a black woman with a white man was still pretty uncommon. It is still pretty uncommon. The film was set up on the premise that Ashton Kutcher was not exactly the perfect man for the young lady, but he really, truly loved her. He had recently lost his job and he was always trying to impress her father so a lot of white lies were being told along the way. This film was a comedic way to look at this issue and it has a few uncomfortable scenes that show a few of the differences between cultures. However, it is again a Hollywood story so it was a happy ending story, but it was able to look at this issue from another way while also making people laugh.



Personal Significance:

Well, I will first say that Bernie Mac, rest his soul, has always been one of my favorite actors. He is hilarious and so much fun to watch on screen. Sidney Poitier will always be one of the great actors of the 20th century. Both of these men should be looked at fondly by cinematic history.

These movies are great. They touched my soul in different ways, but in ways that I could understand. I truly believe that love is love and so when I see people struggling over relationships based on things like skin color I can’t fully understand it. I have liked lots of people from all kinds of backgrounds, but it has always been on whether they are nice to me (and if they have cute shoes). LOL. Seriously though, these films are important to me because they put out a positive message of love, but it also shows some of the things that people struggle with when having interracial relationships.

Take some time and watch both of these films. I think you can enjoy both.