I really appreciate the film "Dear White People". After all, few films try to really say much of anything about race and racism. It's a touchy subject so instead of opening up honest dialog, films generally offer bland messages and avoid controversy. However, this film often doesn't mind going into 'dangerous' territory. But, unfortunately, too often the film disappoints when it comes to many of the white characters--characters that often lack the depth of the black characters. In essence, the whites seems like caricatures too much of the time--though the guy playing Sam's boyfriend was an exception.

The film is set at a fictional Ivy League school and centers around various black students and their attempts to find themselves and their voice in this place. Some of these students tend to keep a low profile, some try desperately to fit in with the 'in crowd' (i.e, the popular but racist white kids) and some struggle to stand above the crowd. Sam, in particular, struggles. On one hand, she hosts a controversial show called 'Dear White People' where she addresses race and what black people REALLY think. But, on the other, despite her strong image as a fighter, she is filled with uncertainty and doubts.

I really loved seeing the wide variety of black characters. It provided a rich tapestry and pushed back against common depictions of blacks as a monolithic one-size-fits-all look you often see in films or on television. But this also heightens what doesn't work in the film. While some black characters are bad, some good but mostly they ALL are just trying to fit in and find themselves, almost all the white characters are racists or have no personality at all. Now this isn't entirely bad--after all, the film is about black students and this should be the focus. But too often cartoony whites make it easy to dismiss the film--and it shouldn't be because it does bring up some excellent points and makes you think...or at least it should.

Fascinating and worth seeing.

Dr. Walter Fairbanks (Dennis Haysbert) is the Dean of Students at Winchester University. There is a race fight after white students organize a Halloween Negro party. The movie flashbacks to five weeks earlier. Sam White (Tessa Thompson) is the militant media major who runs a talk-radio show called 'Dear White People'. Sam wins the election for head of Armstrong-Parker House against ex-boyfriend Troy Fairbanks, the incumbent and the dean's son. Lionel Higgins (Tyler James Williams) is a gay student looking for a place to fit in. He had written a few pieces in the whiter than white paper Observer and gets picked to write a piece on Sam. Kurt Fletcher is the head of the mostly white Garmin Club House and the school humor magazine, the President's son and brother to Troy's girlfriend. Coco is trying to be on a reality show and is pushed into being blacker.

This is treading on familiar territories and taking it to a slightly different place. This is not simply taking on the white establishment or the race divide. Most interestingly, it takes on all comers like the media's interpretation of black culture. This is not just another Spike Lee retread. The setting of higher education does limit its scope. This is a specific slice of the race discussion. I like that this slice is messy. It's a slice of the discussion inside the black community. The film could give voice to a few other different kinds of folks. The white folks other than one guy are limited. They are used more like objects for the plot.

This is a movie I thought I would love, but fell flat on comedy and purpose. The film centers on black students at a fictional Ivy League college. There is a Vlog called "Dear White People" which tells white people what black people think...as if they care. One of the funnier lines was that you now need two black friends to not be a racist and Tyrone who sells you weed doesn't count. Yup. That was a real knee slapper.

Sam White (Tessa Thompson) is a bi-racial student, they actually used the word "mulatto" horrors! She has race identity issues and must over compensate. While the college wants to integrate students, she wants to maintain a black house to maintain black culture. She hates Tyrone Perry movies that stereo-type black people. And white people who use the term African-American instead of black so they don't seem racist are racist.

The characters and plot really didn't evolve that well. The black face "riot" that occurred was a let down and the message was confused. Perhaps the confused message is that race relations is stalled at crossroads, pulling in a number of directions.

The best part of the film was the silent movie shown within the film. Most of the drama of the film I found artificial and boring. "Black or White" or even "Supremacy" are better and more realistic films about race relations.

Guide: F-bomb, N-word, implied sex.