While I enjoy horror comedies, finding favorites is few and far between. The Blackening makes the list thanks to its humor. It’s well known that Black characters rarely survive horror and are often the first to die. A recently published book, The Black Guy Dies First, analyzes typical characterizations and tropes in Black roles (also recommended). In this film, the question is if the Black person dies first, what happens when the whole cast is Black? Filled with hilariously familiar humor, The Blackening is about enjoying the characters and story as they argue about their levels of Blackness amidst a horror movie backdrop.
The Blackening Has a Hilarious Cast
Directed by Tim Story and written by Tracy Oliver and Dewayne Perkins, the movie’s about a group of friends heading to a cabin in the woods for a get-together and celebration for Juneteenth. Among the friends, there’s a conflict between exes Lisa (Antoinette Robinson) and playboy Nnamdi (Sinqua Walls) with Lisa’s gay best friend Dewayne (Dewayne Perkins), who hates Nnamdi for his treatment of Lisa. He is also mad that Nnamdi is present at the celebration. Their tension almost derails the festivities before they can begin as Lisa and Nnamdi are not the exes they lead Dewayne to believe.
Rounding out the cast is Shanika (X Mayo), who’s focused on partying. She runs into Clifton (Jermaine Fowler) while at a dingy gas station. Clifton’s the character you wonder about how they got the invite. King (Melvin Gregg) is the butt of a few jokes, given his interracial relationship. Though his partner is fortunately not present. Then there’s biracial Allison (Grace Byers), who has distrust around white people that likely ties into issues with her white father. Just as the party turns up, with even Dewayne releasing his irritation to have fun, the situation turns frightening.
No Catering—You Get It, or You Don’t
They have to play the game to save their friend Morgan (Yvonne Orji). The questions are like a test of Blackness levels. Some physical humor inspires a chuckle, but the funniest parts are the conversations and singing around the culture. The Blackening shines here, and it’s fascinating to watch it play out onscreen and hear audiences’ reactions. The movie doesn’t explain the humor or pander to white audiences. It’s less horror and more a gathering for us to enjoy with each other. Besides the references to spades which left me recalling when I first played as a kid, the question about the hit show Friends left me hysterical because I was Nnamdi in that one.
It pokes fun at how many use Blackness as a metric and an easily revocable card. Those jokes, plus who receives a cookout invite, come up online constantly for big things like Trump supporters and small things like how you take your grits. Some scenes channel other films. Officer White’s (Diedrich Bader) interaction feels straight out of Get Out, making you, as an audience, shake your head. The self-awareness of how Black characters die in horror films, the dos and don’ts, and even nonsensical parts in horror show up to plenty of hilarity.
A Fun Rewatch
The Blackening is the kind of horror comedy you savor. It’s not about solving who the killer is but enjoying the intricacies of the cast’s relationships and uproariously laughing at the tests and familiar inside cultural moments and joys. It’s like one of those lists on Twitter that you add a point for everyone you have. But The Blackening is this in film mode with horror tropes thrown in for a deliciously fun flick. I not only loved it, but I’ll also be buying it the moment it becomes available. Watch The Blackening in theaters with friends, enjoy, and yell at the screen.
