JuguAbraham Review of Residue

Residue (2020)

Restrained and mature filmmaking of a black filmmaker making his debut

[7/10 · 4 October 2020]

One of the best films on blacks in USA by a black director--his debut. Good visuals. Restrained and very magnetic acting by non-professionals. The film is about the gradual "gentrification" of Q street in Washington DC, not very far from the White House. (I have been a frequent visitor to the J and K street areas of the same city where the black population is in minority.) Q street was considered a black majority area. Land developers try to evict the black population so that the land/properties can be inhabited by white folks. The film rarely shows the whites, but when it shows their actions it is searing for the viewer. The whites take out their pet dogs for a walk and allow their pets to defecate on lawns of homes owned by blacks and do not clean up the mess even when confronted by home owners and instead yell profanities at the blacks from a safe distance. The final words are from a white couple standing on the terrace of a high rise residential complex who now feel safe that the black community is a lot less in number than before. The "Residue" of the title refers to the blacks who refuse to move out of Q street. An important film of 2020.