[These are the 18 'problematic' classic films TCM will examine in a new series]

Thank you!  I think they forgot to consider the movie was made in a different time when discussing.  Shouldn’t they have kept the discussion within the context of when it was produced since that was a monumental line in the movie?  I get what others said about it either being an uncomfortable discussion or trying to discuss the movie within today’s context. Unfortunately it is falling victim to today’s over use of race theories.  The message between two generations was so key, so factual. I disagreed entirely with their conclusion that the movie was about the white man father controlling everyone. The movie was entirely centric around S T’s character and with him dealing internally with the decision of his daughter and fiancé.  By making the white father the villain in the movie, they erased the beautiful underscore of the differences of black generations, and the momentum of the civil rights movement. 

[These are the 18 'problematic' classic films TCM will examine in a new series]

On 3/12/2021 at 8:57 PM, Dargo said:

Yes, that IS a terrific point that the newbie here brought up, Ls. I agree...ABSOLUTELY!

Same as yourself, I too missed the little "history lesson" the hosts imparted upon us during this last showing of this film, as I also last watched this film when TCM presented it just a week ago or so. 

And so now to attempt an explanation to the newbie Shana's incredulousness to our hosts failing to bring this point up, I'll now offer the following.

I have a tendency to believe the reason they didn't bring this issue up was because the concept of "reverse-discrimination" or "reverse-racism" (and make no mistake here, Poitier's father's world view is presented as just THAT) has become viewed within our culture as a more "acceptable" form of racism than that which holds to the idea of white supremacy.

Yep! I'll betcha the reason our TCM hosts didn't bother to mention nor examine one of THE most defining moment in this film was because they, first, didn't think it important enough for some reason, and secondly because and as I mentioned above, the concept of "reverse-discrimination"/"reverse-racism" is one that it seems is not nearly as "controversial" in today's America as is your general form of racism.

And from what I understandand and have seen firsthand in my life, incredulously, many people in this country do not even accept nor acknowledge the existence of it and/or will attempt to give you rationalizations as to why it is "acceptable".

(...okay, and NOW let the fireworks begin)

Thank you!  I think they forgot to consider the movie was made in a different time when discussing.  Shouldn’t they have kept the discussion within the context of when it was produced since that was a monumental line in the movie?

 

[These are the 18 'problematic' classic films TCM will examine in a new series]

The other night I watched "Guess Who's Coming To Dinner", with Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn.  Not the first time I've seen this movie.  Sidney Poitier is fabulous, and I'll mention his line in a minute.  But afterwards, the three hosts discussed the "white man" and "white father" 'theme dominating the whole film.  They ridicule the lines that Tracy's character delivers at the end of the movie, and chide about him telling the black father how things were going to be.  I have always had an entirely different take on the entire theme of this movie.  The black father is not a main character in this movie, yet no one acknowledged that, and of course it wouldn't be from his perspective mainly.  But the thing that got me was the NO ONE mentioned Poitier's line towards the end of the film where the son is discussing the difference between generations.  What surprised me even more that no one brought attention to this, was that the host asked the question, about what part of the film or line did they think was critical.  No one mentions the line referencing that the dad thought of himself as a black man, and the son thinks of himself as a man.  That is so key, so critical...and yet no one wanted to acknowledge that line, and instead were stuck on the whole 'white father domination'.  Seriously...I wondered how they could ignore that!!!