Review: My Nappy Roots

Went to see ‘My Nappy Roots’ yesterday as part of the Images of Black Women Film Festival at the Tricycle Theatre. I’ve seen Chris Rock’s ‘Good Hair’ and had really wanted to see what this documentary had to offer (if you didn’t know, there was an issue with Chris’s film as it came out after ‘My Nappy Roots’ and it is VERY similar).

I’d say although the two films are very similar, ‘Good Hair’ took a far more comedic approach and featured very little people with natural hair. IMO, My Nappy Roots (although not as finished in its delivery) as Good Hair is definitely the better film, simply for the fact that it encompassed so many elements in such a short time.

There was a Q&A with the director who mentioned that people had told her to take out the historical part of the documentary but if you get to see the movie you’ll be glad she didn’t.

The screening room was packed and overflowing mostly with naturals and about 8 guys (one of which came with me…he counted them – I think he was also in his element being amongst chicks with natural hair, lol). Tickets sold out pretty quick and there were even people standing at the back!

I don’t want to speak about the whole film, but I really learnt a lot from it. I also thought that Vivica Fox may have a hair issue – some of the comments she made, whether in jest or not were like REALLY VIVICA?! I had to laugh at the celebrities talking about how people addressed them once they chose to have natural hair (even though I’m a designer, I get that whole thing at work and even from people I speak to with me having started locs).

I really really REALLY want to do another screening of this film as I think so many people need to see it. Someone asked if there were going to be more voices from outside of the US which I can understand, (she mentioned that the answers to why women relax or wear weaves may be more shocking than the director would expect) but Regina really wanted to get a larger following with My Nappy Roots and then move onto the international side (she’d recently been to a Black film festival in Germany).

I’m by no means a Natural Hair Nazi, but I do believe that as women, and especially young girls we do things to our hair that have a deeper reasoning than even we realise. I recently had a conversation with two young girls, one of them who – in describing what she wants to look like, mentioned the term Black Barbie – basically a Black girl with long hair and small facial features. I was pretty much speechless while listening to them rant on…I have to get them to see the film!

I know there’s also a documentary that Jamelia did about where weave hair comes from that I’d also really like to see, but for now – I’m definitely trying to get Regina Kimbell over here.

Official Film Site

Twitter

Facebook


Share