Soul Man

Although Soul Man drew criticism from the NAACP over its premise (a white law student passes himself off as black, and wins a scholarship because no black student in Los Angeles is qualified), most people will not see this film as being racist. The plot has Mark Watson (C. Thomas Howell) overdosing on tanning pills after his father cuts the financial umbilical cord, putting a shadow over his recent acceptance to Harvard Law School. When his friend (played by Arye Gross, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Julian Lennon) questions the wisdom of Mark's change of color, he responds "This is the Cosby decade. America loves black people." After Mark is ticketed, jailed, and beaten in short order, he comes to realize that being black is not a continuous bed of affirmative action roses. Written by Carol Black, and directed by Steve Miner, Soul Man deserves credit for not being wimpy about its humor. The filmmakers make their points most effectively when they tackle the stereotypes head on (as when two white student basketball coaches argue over which team Mark will play for; Mark's natural "playing" style, done in wonderful slow motion is an absolute howl). And there is a marvelous, and telling, scene where the family of Mark's white girlfriend each try to guess who's come to dinner: the mother sees Mark as an oversexed barbarian, the father sees him as a pimp, and the young son pictures Mark as Prince. As Mark's teacher, James Earl Jones is characteristically grave and intense, and Rae Dawn Chong is appealing as the love interest. Recommended.