Tales From The Hood
For years this movie has scared the absolute shit out of me. The film is a horror anthology directed by Rusty Cundieff which released in 1995. It centers on four issues that plague the black community and these “stories” are told by a truly menacing funeral director to a couple of drug dealers who have come to him to procure “the shit.” Watching this as a Black youth the film does exactly what it’s intended to do, almost too well. The imagery is so triggering and jarring that I couldn’t see past that context and explore other themes shown…until now.
Listen, hats off to anyone who can get past that chilling call to Clarence to even watch the first tale because this is where many have fallen. Clarence is a cop who witnesses the beating of a community leader but fails to intervene, even going so far as to trust that his coworkers will do the right thing after said beating and get the man to a hospital. His character is meant to highlight those that believe we can change corruption and hate from the inside, Clarence is a fool. This story is as timely as ever, and it’s in part because it’s still a timely issue that the call for abolition now be as loud as ever. The cops end up killing the community killer and planting drugs on him, tarnishing his image in life and death. Of course this deeply affects Clarence who ends up quitting the police squad, but at that point, that action is moot. Moorehouse, the community leader, rises from the dead and kills his murders. In the final scene, he asks Clarence, “where were you when I needed you, brother?” I think every one of us should have to watch it before we put on that badge.
What’s also interesting about this film and maybe often missed is that it’s not just a horror film, those that are wronged are not martyrs and those characters actively fight back against that narrative. This is a horror film with teeth and a very clear message for the victims: fight back. In the second tale, we see that message illuminated by a teacher who goes above and beyond to do what he should simply and easily be allowed to do, which is remove an abuser from the home. My mind couldn’t help but wander back to Gabriel Hernandez when I watched the frustrated teacher treat the wounds of his student. Finally, the teacher decides to pay the student’s home a visit himself. Unwilling to allow the young boy and his mother explain away the actions of this monster and doing simply what needs to be done, the teacher literally fights the abuser to the death.
The third tale is a bit more sinister, and requires an understanding of all kinfolk ain’t skinfolk. If there was more of the latter our political landscape would look quite different but we’d all be much better off. Rhodie is another example of a Black person wasting their energy trying to uphold white supremacists. And even exemplifies something darker, especially for a minor community when it’s time to vote: “the lesser of two evils.” It is these token Blacks on the campaign team who paint the Metgers of the world as “constantly evolving,” “misunderstood” bigots who are “open to learn” as long as we give them our vote so they can further defund, neglect, cast aside, cut and just plain ignore the programs and needs of their constituents. I’ve long since stopped attending that horror show.
The fourth tale has the most dubious message, and is perhaps the most outdated. With the film being released in 1995, a quick google search of other films at the time make it clear why black-on-black crime was a hot button issue. If it were to be released today, Cundieff’s ignorance in portraying the why of gang violence and the how of the prison pipeline would be no less than lazy. Thankfully though that work has been, and continues being done in more recent works. Speaking of, I look forward to Nia DaCosta’s retelling of “Candyman” in this regard. Judging from the teaser trailers, it seems she’ll effortlessly portray that intersection of black pain and white violence which trickles down to a kind of survival that begets self-hate.
I suppose there’s some merit in going back to revisit the things that used to scare us as children. We learn that if we stop covering our eyes and really focus on the monster we can see it for what it is. And when we see it clearly we oftentimes can fight it. There’s hope in growth. So, here’s to hoping that these tales will be a lot less scary to those coming up in the hood after us.
