I waited until the next day after watching to write this review.

In hindsight, it isn't as wise or profound as you want it to be.

Jeffrey Wright is great in the role and he embodies the sad sack writer who goes home to deal with his family, but in the meantime trips into a ruse of being a "voice of embittered Black man" who panders to White guilt.

On the surface, this seems like a window to mine great comedy. Instead, that is only on the perimeter of his internal struggle. I felt the focus should have been that. As the trailer suggests. Instead, it is more internal. It skates across a non-commital idea of what an artist should focus on.

Marketing wise, this is not Oscar bait. The true intention is to never offend the White audience while also not ostracizing the Black struggle. There is nothing deep about this movie. They are conversations that we've had online. Or arguments we've all had.

The real struggle is him, as an artist. He is battling another Black writer who seems to be pandering to the Black voice to White people. But their explanation is that she is holding a mirror to society rather than exploiting it. Um...not really. Deep down she knew this material sells to the guilt ridden literati (ahem...Washington Post). In fact, much like "Get Out" they mock the White leftist, which they go along with in hopes to be with the "in crowd".

I find it ironic that this movie is being celebrated for that reason. A self-described heavily White contingent Oscar voters fell for Thelonius Ellis's (Wright) ruse. Meta workings by a skilled movie maker Cord Jefferson.

For those who are keeping their distance due to perceiving it as being angry at Whites. It isn't. This turns into an artist's struggle.

There are things that take up a lot of head space. For instance when a family member dies, their quickness to gloss over the tragedy MAYBE plays into the dark comedy aspect. But that type of inconsistency causes some of us to not empathize with the family.

Kudos to Leslie Uggams whose bright kind face and eyes makes every moment a delight. She is acerbic in the right places. And holds more in a simple gesture than any words can.

Jeffrey Wright deserves the Oscan nom. The movie itself...fell flat for me.

Still, I miss the days of having family drama in theaters rather than making it a series. At times it feels VERY t.v. Mood. But it's a nice enough flick, in the world of "Ordinary People" or "Terms Of Endearment"