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Friday, November 2, 2012

Music / Film The Gentrification of Nina Simone: Stop This Movie

Posted by Jen Graves on Fri, Nov 2, 2012 at 2:42 PM

In her "open letter to anyone who cares about Nina Simone," Aaron Overfield writes that the forthcoming unauthorized biopic of the seriously unparalleled Simone is a sham she'd have despised—and that it should be stopped. Simone's daughter doesn't support it.

Still, it began filming this month, according to reports, and among the controversial decisions by first-time director Cynthia Mort is her choice of starlet Zoe Saldana to play Nina. Mary J. Blige was on tap, but dropped out. Other actors involved include emerging genius David Oyelowo, but he's playing her straight love interest, when in reality his character was an out gay man. Curious choice for a queer director as Mort is, Overfield points out.

There's the question of Saldana's appearance. A Change.org petition has already been circulated calling for her removal.

There's the question of whether a white woman is the right choice to direct the first-ever biopic about Nina Simone. If you know anything about Nina Simone, the answer to that is pretty clear: Um, no. It's not that white folks can't make biopics about black folks. Let's not get all simple and shouty. But for the very first Nina Simone biopic after her death, and NINA SIMONE, the firebrand racial justice fighter to the end who never minced words about the way white culture and white people tried to cruelly dominate her life and world but she would never let them because FUCK THAT? And given all these distortions? I'm with Overfield: It's just not right.

From his letter:

The discussions of the issues are as complex as they are controversial; however, they are important conversations to have and keep having. The most frustrating people are the ones who imply everyone should just shut up and “wait and see” or “leave them alone.” That kind of attitude and oppression is not in the spirit of Nina Simone whatsoever. Quite the opposite. Nina was vocal, defiant, a warrior, an activist. She would not have simply shut up and sat down. She would’ve shown up at the studio with a shotgun to speak with Ms. Mort and slapped the makeup off Zoe. So let’s get that straight first. We’re going to talk about this and those of us with strong, impassioned opinions are going to express them. ...

The script...is based in a series of lies. That is our starting point.

Read it all.

If this movie does get made, which it looks absolutely likely that it will, may we all spend the time we would have used to see it reading Simone's autobiography I Put A Spell On You, available now on the shelves of Elliott Bay Books.

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Comments (25) RSS

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I was just now listening to Sinnerman. This may be the worst idea ever. Well, maybe the whole movie could be done with white actors in blackface, but it's really hard to come up with bad ideas sometimes.

Posted by MacCrocodile

on November 2, 2012 at 2:49 PM

So, latinos & latinas are not people of color? They're white? I'm not disputing the question you raise about the appropriateness of the choice - I'm questioning your unilateral declaration that all latinos/latinas are white.

Posted by TJ on November 2, 2012 at 2:57 PM

On the other hand, biopics are always travesties, by definition; this particular travesty is no worse than the inevitable travesty anyone else would have made. Don't watch biopics; get some Nina Simone records and videos instead. SPL has a ton of books, CDs, and DVDs.

Posted by Fnarf

on November 2, 2012 at 2:57 PM

Sorry. I mixed up your comments about Saldana with your comments about Cynthia Mort. I stand corrected.

Posted by TJ on November 2, 2012 at 2:58 PM

Getting approval from the family usually ensures a hagiography.

Posted by Proteus on November 2, 2012 at 3:00 PM

@2 actually, the census defined them that way until the latter part of last century. The current definition is quite different.

Posted by Will in Seattle

on November 2, 2012 at 3:01 PM

I was listening to Mississippi Goddam (Live 1964). She said during the recording, "I mean every word of it." and "This is a showtune, but the show hasn't been written."

Posted by kim in portland

on November 2, 2012 at 3:08 PM

for perspective, jennifer love-hewitt played audrey hepburn, which kind of makes this seem more reasonable...

Posted by mystified on November 2, 2012 at 3:18 PM

Strangely, I could see Mary J. Blige pulling it off.

With a completely different creative team and script, of course.

Posted by d.p. on November 2, 2012 at 3:25 PM

I LOVE Nina Simone. I'd love to defend her here. But since when are biopics supposed to be some kind of high art form that honor artists in a thoughtful and intelligent way? Can anyone name a single great biopic? One that captures the spirit of the subject without injecting a bunch of fantasy bullshit? By their very nature, biopics stink, except the ones that fall in the campy, cult-classic category. Wishing horrible art will suddenly become thoughtful art for this one person is like wishing a tiger to change its stripes. What's the point?

But a bigger issue is censorship and this call to halt another person's artistic expression, even if it is crappy. Do all artists of all art forms need to get approval from Nina's estate before depicting her? It all comes off a bit holier than thou.

People who care about Nina Simone will just keep on listening to her amazing music. That's all we need.

Posted by mitten on November 2, 2012 at 3:33 PM

Fretting that some Oscarbait movie turning out bad could be a problem for Nina Simone's legacy? That overstates Hollywood's power. Worse yet, it's disrespectful to Simone's power.

Ignorant of it, more like. How dare you worry about ME, she'd say.

Posted by gloomy gus on November 2, 2012 at 3:34 PM

I think the gentrification of Ms. Simone happened long before this movie came around.

Posted by stinkbug on November 2, 2012 at 3:36 PM

@10,

There are definitely biopics out there that qualify as excellent cinema (although I can't really say whether they represented the subject's life really well). Two that come to mind: Raging Bull and The Aviator, and I think it's not coincidental that both were directed by Martin Scorsese.

Posted by keshmeshi on November 2, 2012 at 3:44 PM

Easy solution: replace Zoe Saldana with Lauryn Hill (the obvious choice for the lead), and the movie never gets finished!

Posted by Sir Vic on November 2, 2012 at 3:47 PM

I admire her music and her brave activism, but she was definitely a mess as a person, especially in later life. I remember when she was supposed to do an hour of the morning arts-and-interview show on WBUR Boston (The Connection, iirc) about a decade ago, for what would have been a completely fawning treatment. She finally showed up a half-hour after the show started, belligerent and clearly altered. The host was practically despondent at the way someone he so greatly wanted to admire was acting.

Posted by Warren Terra on November 2, 2012 at 3:52 PM

You may not be shouty, but asserting that no white (or possibly latina) woman should be allowed at the helm of the first Nina Simone biopic is sure as hell simple. Clearly many members of the creative team, especially Cynthia Mort, shouldn't be allowed within a mile of the film, but that doesn't automatically exclude all white female directors as a class from being capable of producing a film worthy of the subject. The right director for the project could be a black woman, a white woman, a latino man, or even a biracial, bisexual, differently-abled trans-man. The package Cynthia Mort comes in isn't the problem; it's that her alteration of the life of a transformative cultural figure to suit her own artistic vision shows that the film won't be about Nina Simone, musician, activist, and icon, but about Cynthia Mort, special little snowflake. That's not a racial thing; it's a clueless, entitled douchebag thing.

Posted by quix on November 2, 2012 at 4:38 PM

the 1st Nina Simone: Remixed CD gentrified her for me.

MY NAME IS PEACHES!

Posted by Max Solomon on November 2, 2012 at 5:20 PM

Sheesh, not only do they have a white director they're using a white actress too? I thought the blackface joke was a joke not what the movie was going to be... or are they going to whiten her up along with giving it the Hoellywould-Treatment?

Posted by Skye Blu on November 2, 2012 at 5:22 PM

@16 Those things usually go hand in hand, but I agree w/ you. The distinction is important.

Posted by Some Old Nobodaddy Logged In on November 2, 2012 at 5:32 PM

I was terribly upset over the ridiculous Oliver Stone biopic of Jim Morrison. Somehow life went on.

Posted by TLjr on November 2, 2012 at 5:50 PM

Holy white cracker, thanks for that video.

Posted by ejamadoodle on November 2, 2012 at 6:37 PM

@15 I heard that interview too, and then attended her concert in SBoston on the waterfront (Harborside?) that same evening. A doctor friend of mine came with me and said, "She's been overmedicated. Clear as day. She needs a new doctor."

I'd seen Nina Simone before at Symphony Hall and it was glorious. This last show she did in Boston was off the charts ridiculous/sad. She forgot she'd played Here Comes the Sun, so she sang it all over again. In the middle of one of her musician's solos she sat down on the stage, reeling, and had the hardest time getting back to her piano. When she called out for requests, and I yelled out "Sinnerman" everyone around me hushed me, saying, "you want to kill her?"

I read her autobiography and clearly she made all kinds of crappy choices from the crap hand she was dealt. But she left the US for its racist policies to end up where? South of France. Not Botswana or Kenya or Zimbabwe.

If the biopic is good there will be vindication.

Posted by sheiler

on November 2, 2012 at 7:29 PM

@13 I thought of two I like: American Splendor and Ed Wood (the latter is probably all fiction). But I'll bet a million bucks this film will be just like Coal Miner's Daughter, Walk the Line, Ray, Sweet Dreams, the Doors, etc, in it will be entertaining, have fun/funny moments, and totally kick-ass performances, but follow that same tiresome, plodding, identical formula; ugh, it just gets so agonizing in the latter two-thirds.

Biographies always inspire Award-winning performances, many of which are deserved. But it annoys me that reviewers equate an amazing performance with a great film, when it's usually more like a case of a director essentially following a great actor around with a camera.

Posted by mitten on November 4, 2012 at 10:12 AM

Zoe Saldana is not Caucasian. Never heard of Nina Simone before except for this controversy. Two biopics that I loved were the one about Buddy Holly starring Gary Busey and La Bamba (Ritchie Valens) starring Lou Diamond Phillips.

Posted by Patricia Kayden on November 4, 2012 at 2:53 PM

@10, @13, @23: I'm an avowed fan of Julie Taymor's Frida Kahlo film, though I am aware that's a polarizing example.

Posted by d.p. on November 4, 2012 at 5:38 PM