Southside With You

**Spoiler Alert**

Director: Richard Tanne/Starring: Tika Sumpter and Parker Sawyers

While watching director Richard Tanne's feature film debut; Southside With You; I wasn't sure if what was playing onscreen was a Democratic Party infomercial or an actual movie. In case you missed the highly elusive trailer for the film (I only saw it a few days before), the movie's plot can be summarized in a few words: Barack Obama's historic first "date" with his future wife Michelle. That's it; you can go home now.
My initial reaction was: is this a joke, because it doesn't look like a movie. How does one really categorize it? A biopic? No, it isn't that. A historical drama? I guess. But what it really looks and feels like is a T.V. pharmaceutical ad, stretched to an overly long 84 minutes. And thank goodness for the relatively short running time; three hours of this would have been excruciating and maybe grounds for a congressional inquiry.
I'm not sure why I bothered to include a spoiler alert for this post--what exactly am I spoiling? I think the public's knowledge of Obama's life dispels any mystery or surprises the story purports to offer.

I guess it goes without saying that this "film" is a bore, which pains me to write, considering I voted for the guy. Did we really need a movie about Obama's first date with the future first lady? What's next; a trilogy about Lyndon B. Johnson's first ice-cream social with Lady Bird (if there was one)? An epic about Calvin Coolidge's first moonlight walk with Grace Goodhue? I've seen some fairly ridiculous, flimsy films get green-lighted over the years but this one is a doozy.

The story is direct; getting to the point in a hurry. Set in 1989 Chicago; Southside With You tells the story of how a young Harvard Law School graduate named Barack Obama; an intern for a corporate law firm and our country's future president, arranged to meet his work advisor; Michelle Robinson (Tika Sumpter) for what she believed was a friendly ride to a community meeting.

When we first see Michelle, she is preparing to meet with Barack while her parents needle her about her "date," a designation that she is quick to correct. She insists the meeting is only professional, with no romantic agenda attached. We see from her surroundings the family is hardly wealthy but are nevertheless removed from the more economically-challenged Chicago neighborhoods.

We cut to a young, black man; Barack Obama (Parker Sawyers, who captures the president's vocal particulars quite nicely) as he arrives at the Robinson residence in his shabby compact. We immediately notice a cigarette in his hand, which remains constant throughout the story. Michelle gently chides him for being late and is quick to mention his tardiness his first day on the job. She also notices the hole in the floor of his car but refrains from asking about it.

Michelle is irked when she learns the meeting they are to attend is several hours in the future. Barack's idea about spending the day together at an African-American art show with lunch afterward is met with Michelle's firm disapproval. Barack finds her resistance to be part of her unimpeachable (forgive the expression) integrity, which forbids romantic contact with co-workers, especially a subordinate outside of work. Barack pushes until he accedes to her wishes, stating "it isn't a date until you say so." In spite of her objection, Michelle agrees to go along.

Their pre-meeting conversations are supposed to reveal everything about their character, while also providing biographical information. We learn about Michelle's education; her undergraduate life at Columbia and law studies at Harvard. She shares anecdotal information about school; including the bigotry she encountered on campus. She also talks about her father, who insisted she and her brother receive a rigorous education. The hardships of being the only woman in an all-male firm is another salient point she gets across.

Much of what Barack shares with Michelle will be familiar to the audience; his itinerant youth in Hawaii, Indonesia and Kenya; his white mother; who he adores and his black father, who he is reluctant to discuss, even when prodded.

One of the film's most interesting scenes is a testy conversation where Barack haughtily judges Michelle's choice to work in corporate law, which she volleys back at him; calling attention to his own hypocritical presence at the firm. Fully chastised, Barack apologizes; having learned a cogent lesson about passing judgement on others.

The climactic moment--if the film can be said to have one--is at a community meeting, where residents express their frustration with the city's reluctance to fund a badly-needed community center. As the speaker is unable to to disarm their anger, he invites Barack to address the gathering. The results are predictably inspiring, as he uses his persuasive oratory to quell the attendees' pessimism with a rousing speech about proactive, community action. Shots of Michelle being moved by Barack's speech and his compassionate commitment to the community are predictably touching. For the viewer, the disappointing thought that his speech is the film's centerpiece, which occupies a significant portion of screen-time, is disheartening.
Is this really it? This is a movie? I'm all for films reaching beyond the conventional plot imperatives of conflict and resolution but I think every movie-goer will agree with me when I say a movie must have a point; even if its only aesthetic. The closest approach to conflict comes after the speech when Michelle and Barack run into a white, senior colleague at the movies. Michelle is naturally mortified to have a co-worker see her out with an intern and wastes little time scolding Barack afterward for allowing the incident to take place. But being Barack; he is able to calm Michelle and before long--boom!; their day together finally becomes a date. Pretty riveting cinema, eh? But we do discover their first movie together was Do the Right Thing; if that's any consolation.

I give credit to Parker Sawyers and Tika Sumpter for their performances. I don't know if they were actually ever presented a script but they did very well. I wish I could laud Tanne for his directorial brilliance but he probably had little to do but point the camera. Maybe his next directing gig will be more challenging.

Why this movie would be made at the end of Obama's time in office rather than at the beginning of his second term is beyond me. But timing is immaterial; this is a pointless snoozer. The country is too distracted with the Trump and Clinton campaigns to really care anymore about the Obamas. I think I'd rather watch a congressional filibuster than anything like this again. Or maybe I would, with a touch of recasting. How about Keegan Michael-Key as Barack and Leslie Jones as Michelle?
It has my vote.