"Am I Racist?" - a movie review -Dustin Dopps Contributor
PHOTO USE COURTESY OF FANDANGO
I don't laugh easily. I get amused at things and sometimes get a wry, "tickled" grin on my face, but laughing out loud isn't something I can do on command. It takes something unusual; something odd; something absurd.
And what's more absurd than conservative commentator Matt Walsh putting on skinny jeans and a man bun and trying to learn about DEI and anti-racism? Not much...
I thoroughly enjoyed "What Is a Woman?," Walsh's previous documentary, so I was pretty sure I would enjoy this one too. The topic is ripe for examination (and ridicule) so I knew it would be entertaining. Still, I was surprised that this movie made me laugh out loud five different times. It is quite funny, but also quite serious.
I didn't know how this movie would perform in a suburb of Portland. This area, despite what the people in charge would like you to believe, isn't exactly known for tolerance of non-Leftist ideas. But I was pleasantly surprised to find myself in a theater with about 60 other people who were clearly enjoying themselves.
When an ad came on showing John Legend recommending everyone get the newest COVID vaccine, a girl yelled "How stupid! Know your audience!" I think she was probably around 20 years old and she was in a group of people her age.
When a trailer came on for a new Dinesh D'Souza film about Trump, people in the theater cheered. It was definitely a different audience than I'm used to.
Throughout the movie they laughed, they gasped, they clapped, and they cheered. It was, honestly, the best audience I've been in for a long time. They were totally engaged.
But what about the movie? What's it about?
The basic "plot" is this: Matt Walsh starts trying to be a DEI consultant so he can learn more about racism in America. It is mostly filmed like a Borat movie - he inserts himself in odd situations (I literally don't know how he got access to so many unique circumstances, except every time he talks to someone new it puts on the screen how much money he had to pay to "consult" with them. One is $50,000!) and then he lets the people he is interacting with say or do what they want.
And I'll say this: in the DEI/Anti-Racism space there are some truly terrible human beings. One says our country is a piece of $#!T and needs to be burned to the ground. One says that smiling too much at a black person is racism. One says that white people have two pieces to their personality, much like the Nazis who killed Jews could separate their evil side from their humanity, and there's no way to reconcile. White people are just evil.
But aside from the deranged people he talks to, Walsh also talks to everyday Americans. And you know what? Every single one of them that isn't a liberal white woman seem like lovely people. There's a specific interview that really touched me with a man who moved here from Africa, and I just wanted to get to know the guy. And there's a bald white guy named Paps that seems awesome too.
It renewed my hope in our country a bit. Sure, there are nutjobs trying to tell us that everything is bad, all white people are evil, and people need to wallow in their grief or their victim status. But the meat and potatoes of our country, the normal everyday people, don't seem to consider race an issue. Multiple times they said "You cut us, we bleed the same. Skin color means nothing." And that's a great message.
I thoroughly enjoyed "Am I Racist?" It was thought-provoking, hilarious, and the kind of dialogue our media should focus on.
I'd love to give spoilers of some of the funniest parts, but I won't. Just know this: the movie is PG-13 for a reason. Several of the interviewees swear. And there is one vulgar sign and one vulgar t-shirt shown. So if that would offend you, stay away.
Otherwise: open your mind and give it a shot. You just might laugh. And you just might learn something.
