Beyond the Lights shows the whole picture of the violence of commodification

I recently had the opportunity to finally watch Beyond the Lights (Thanks Netflix!).  I was excited to watch another film starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw (from Belle) and also Minnie Driver (who rocks), and by a female writer-director (Gina Prince-Bythewood), but I sadly missed it in theatres.

In brief:  Beyond the Lights follows the struggles of a young pop star, Noni, on the verge of superstardom.  The film opens as she is heading towards her chance at making it big, but as just one young woman against the "intimate psychic violence of racism and sexism" (as A.O. Scott describes it so well) that the music industry inflicts upon her, Noni finds herself standing on a balcony considering suicide.  It is only through the intervention of a young police officer that Noni decides to try to live.


The film at its simplest is a love story between Noni and Kaz (the police officer)--- and this story is frequently rather contrived and fantastical.  A.O. Scott describes it as silly in an affectionate way, but also argues that the fantasy of Noni and Kaz's relationship is part of the central project and purpose of the film.  (Read his review for more.)   However, it is important to note that while Kaz sparks Noni's move towards freedom and wholeness, as Minnie Driver explains in an interview: "Kaz saves her physically, but Noni saves herself."

Putting the romantic storyline aside what I found most moving, terrifying, powerful about the film was it's perspective on the music industry (the film arguably focuses more on the hip-hop/R&B industry in which Noni seems to operate, but I'm sure the criticism can apply to other genres as well).  First, the film forces us to witness the overpowering, in-your-face objectification that female artists are subjected to through the music videos Noni has recently released and the photoshoots she endures.  By contrasting this with the first impression we get of Noni (a talented little girl, sensitive, vulnerable and a beautiful soul with a moving voice, who loves singing and wants to make her mother proud) we get to really understand just how reductive, humiliating, sad, and violent these conditions are.  These forces are so powerful in their obliteration of the artist's self and disrespectful of their talents, it is abundantly clear how Noni is so easily chewed up and destroyed by the industry that at the same time it promises to give her everything, strips her of any dignity, safety, or support.

**SPOILERS AHEAD** 

Feminism: Gloria Steinem and Black Women

Gloria Steinem & Dorothy Pitman-Hughes

While at the Black Enterprise’s Women Of Power Summit Gloria Steinem (a noted feminist) made some important comments on race and feminism.  Back in the 1970s Steinem made some "courageous" moves to place a black woman (Pam Grier) on the cover of her Ms. Magazine and published work by Alice Walker, eventually making her one of the first black editors at the publication. However, in a quick interview at the Summit, Steinem is clear not to paint herself as a savior of these women.  Instead, she says:

I thought they [black women] invented the feminist movement. I’ve learned feminism disproportionately from black women. I realize that things being what they are, the white middle-class part of the movement got reported more, but if you look at the numbers and the very first poll of women responding to feminist issues, African American women were twice as likely to support feminism and feminist issues than white women.

The article discussing her interview (theMarySue) explores the importance of this viewpoint in the following sentences:

But as she [Steinem] herself noted, there’s always a reason when any certain person gets held up as a movement’s hero, and in her case her face and body happened to coincide with the white middle class face of the second wave that was pushed forth the most. And therein lies a key to the third wave: Acknowledging that intersectionality has always been crucial to the movement but that women of color, non-cis women, and other categories of non-white non-middle-/upper-class women have historically been pushed to the fringes and left out of the record of their own achievements and struggles.

To conclude the article/interview, Steinem is asked what she would do to help address this issue, to address the women of other races or backgrounds that feel left out of the feminist movement.  Her reply is wonderfully sincere and insightful:

I wouldn’t say anything, I’d listen. The point is that we help each other to get dignity, and autonomy, and freedom. We’re here to help each other.

I am curious how Steinem's point of view fits in with the current realm of the HeforShe movement spearheaded by a very beautiful, white Emma Watson.  Perhaps before we spend energy redefining what "feminism" is to gain the support of males, we should spend more time unifying and/or acknowledging the complexities of the female gender... the countless races, sexual orientations, disabilities, and differences that it wonderfully encompasses.

Catch her interview in the video at the MarySue site.