A few years ago, I sat down to watch the movie that I had heard was pretty good. Two hours and thirteen minutes later, I was sobbing my eyes out texting my friends that they needed to stop what they were doing and watch this movie. This movie was called The Hate U Give and it’s one of those films this is absolutely gut wrenching, powerful, and that leaves you speechless. The film is actually based on the novel by Angie Thomas, but I broke my cardinal rule and watched the film before reading the novel. The story follows Starr Carter, a teenage black girl who attends an all-white preparatory school. Starr is constantly switching her persona depending on which environment she’s in. Soon into the story, her childhood best friend Khalil is murdered in a traffic stop by a police officer while Starr is in the passenger’s seat. After this traumatizing experience, Starr observes how both communities react and faces challenges with her identity and those she considers friends. Starr talks about having two identities based on who she’s around and the stigmatization she faces from both groups. She feels like the “other” in both environments because at her prep school she’s “Williamson Starr” who is one of the only black students and, in her neighborhood, she faces criticism and jokes about not being truly from the hood. I attached a clip below and from 00:05:58- 00:07:00 where Starr talks about her “Williamson Starr” identity. The systemic injustices of police brutality and racism also play key roles in this story while the trial for the police officer who murdered Khalil is taking place. Starr faces conflict with friends from her school who fail to understand her perspective. Starr’s altercation with her friend Hailey reminds me of Toni Morrison’s Recitatif and the relationship between Roberta and Twyla. In both relationships, the girls start off as great friends, but when issues of injustice and racism arise, a feud begins because opposite sides are taken. I think Angie Thomas wants readers of all races and identities to hear her story because everyone can learn something. Those from the African American community can learn to appreciate and express their true identities. Non-Black communities can also learn from this story about how to support Black friends and how to be an ally. Through her characters, Ms. Thomas inspires the conversation about identity and through the trial and riots that follow Khalil’s death, she also sheds light on many injustices faced by the Black community. This is a story of Starr regaining the power of self and through her growth, everyone who reads or watches The Hate U Give can learn a valuable lesson.
Link to “Williamson Starr” movie Clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONQT4WT44YE
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5580266/
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32075671-the-hate-u-give
Hi! Really good job on this post. This movies left me in tears as well and I can 100% say if someone reading this hasn’t seen it; go watch it! It is so (sadly) relevant in our world right now and I think everybody needs to watch this film for maybe a new perspective. You also did an amazing job relating this film back to what we have learned in this class.
Hello thank you for the post. I’ve never watched the movie before but I can feel what’s the movie like. I can appeal to her emotion easily since things like these are happening in our world every day and we should definitely change it. I’ll watch the movie when I have time for it.