After watching a news profile of the real characters, I was all set to go see the movie, The Soloist. But then, I read a couple of reviews. The reviewers praised the movie, but both made mention of a peculiar aspect, which unfortunately killed my desire to see the movie at the box office. Both reviewers stated that the schizophrenic street musician (played by Jamie Foxx) came to view the reporter (played by Robert Downey, Jr.) as his "personal God," something which, one perceptive reviewer readily pointed out, didn't appear at all in the book.
I'm not sure why filmmakers feel the need to keep breathing life into this archaic, Tarzan-flavored paradigm. It's either the ole "primitive in need of a Savior" scenario, magic Negroes or the Black wisecracking sidekick or best friend. Why can't we just be equals, sometimes? Why can't we just learn from one another on a playing field where there are no White Saviors or primitives of color in need of rescue from themselves . . .
I'd planned to take my music-loving son to see this movie. But something imbedded deep within my spirit and psyche, won't allow me to shell out good money to sit up in a movie theatre and passively subject him or myself to such debasing, unimaginative and unnecessary mythologies. I'd still very much like to see the movie. But I'll wait until it appears on cable or DVD.
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