A Black Soul for “Soul.”

 Well folks, we have finally arrived. We, Black people that is, finally got a Pixar movie for us and about us. Sort of. It’s called “Soul” and it made me cry twice. Let’s talk about it.

“Soul” was moving, funny, and well-written. With an all star cast of Black heavyweights, such as Jamie Foxx, Phylicia Rashad, Angela Bassett, Daveed Diggs, and Questlove, they were making it clear who the intended audience of this movie was. However there are some fairly divisive issues that come to light as well. 

**in case it isn’t obvious, there will be spoilers**

Some things I liked:

Phylicia Rashad’s voice. 

The piano solo while Joe Gardner reflects on his life and all he has done was what got me teary eyed the most. 22’s first experience with pizza was a delight. 

Some things I had issues with:

Why was the main Black man character in a Black Pixar movie a cat or a blue blob for 70% of the movie? That really irked me once the movie was over and I’d wiped the tears from my eyes. Why couldn’t he have just been a person? Why instead a funny, fat cat who apparently didn’t know half of what he thought he knew about himself? This struck me the same way Disney’s, “The Princess and the Frog” did. Main character is Black but that Black main character ends up as an animal, or in this movie, a blob, for the majority of their own movie. Why is that? Why can’t we be presented as the people we are on the animated screen? Help me understand what I’m missing.

Why didn’t we spend more time on Mr. Gardner’s actual life instead of just the sad parts? We hear a love interest mentioned twice but there’s nothing about her. We get an overview of Joe’s life but it’s high-level. Why didn’t we get to see in more detail? Why make his life purposefully so depressing and singular? Did he have friends? Did he ever have any sort of “big break” previously? Did he ever try any other instruments? What else was his life made of? It would have been nice to know.

Why wasn’t 22 a black girl or woman? This character would have hit so much harder if she was Black. Yes, Tina Fey is great but have you seen the cast list I mentioned? There’s no one else not of color who is a main character. The lessons learned and shared would have had even more of an impact if they were being imparted to a little Black girl lost in the ether, not wanting to go to Earth and have a body or a life. And it couldn’t possibly have been for lack of availability. Issa Rae (because some of you think her voice is annoying and that was a main point for Tina), Nicole Byers, Natasha Rothwell, Yvonne Orji, LALA MILAN!! The suggestions for actresses to take on the role abound and it could have really boosted a young, unknown’s career. But instead we got Tina Fey. 

I saw some opinions regarding how 22 laid it down in the barbershop and had to agree. They basically said why would it be okay for a white person to do all that in a black barbershop. This didn’t irk me so much as strike me as odd. A barbershop is literally a Black male sanctuary so seeing and hearing 22 in her little high-pitched voice come in, read some for filth, and show them all what’s what was weird and incongruent with what I know Black barbershops to be.

Lastly, oh look, a Black man saving a little white woman from herself and everything else around her... again. Cool. A specifically white person needing guidance from a Black man or woman in order to find their way and get their life together is by no means a new or fresh topic. It’s so old in fact, I tend to avoid movies like that entirely. I prefer new stories about things that aren’t played out, things I have not already seen. Joe haphazardly showing 22 the meaning of life while trying to save his own, walking through her tunnel of self-doubt and negative reinforcement from all the mentors that came before him, and then seeing himself last, and pulling her out, is peak saviorism. Just another reason it would have been so much more striking if the person being saved was Black. 

In conclusion, the movie was a nice step in a direction we’ve been waiting too long for. Next time, let the Black man be a Black man for the entire length of the film, huh?

xx