Passing (2021)

 Well, this film was a disappointment, to me at least.

It was an interesting concept, one that's been done before (see below) but now, it seemed that it would finally be done right, only just wasn't very interesting.

Irene Redfield (Tessa Thompson) seems happy with her life. She has a loving doctor husband, two adorable growing boys and adores her volunteer work. And then she runs into her friend from long ago, Clare Bellew (Ruth Negga) who is now passing for white, seemingly forgetting about her true heritage, feeling that it would be easier and better for her to live her life as white. Irene is both appalled and slightly jealous and protective of Clare's new life and doesn't want her to interfere but Clare finds it freeing to spend time with Irene and not have to pretend she's white. But it's reeking havoc on Irene's life and while her husband, Brian (Andre Holland) claims he loves her, Clare happens to the be the life of her party and soon, Brian's besotted with her too. But everything comes to a sudden, devastating end with Clare's husband, her white husband, John (Alexander Skarsgaard) discovers her truth and Clare falls out a window to her death, though it is Irene pushes her, in a snap reaction, still perhaps trying to protect her from ruining the carefully constructed life she had. And that's how it ends. I kept waiting for something to happen, but I can't say that's what I was expecting.

Despite the lush sets and brilliant performances, the screenplay is slightly chunky, with big gaps in the timeline and the film just failed to be interesting. I hope this doesn't make a bad person, but I felt that Clare should have been the lead character, not Irene. While the ingredients were all there, they were not assembled properly, which is the biggest shame of all. Grade: B-

Side Notes:

-Despite the gross miscasting of Jeanne Crain as Pinky, in Elia Kazan's Pinky, that film was ultimately much better as it was incredibly interesting with solid supporting performances from Ethel Waters and Ethel Barrymore. Yes, casting a white actress to portray a light-skinned African-American woman was just wrong but it was 1949 so Hollywood wouldn't have been able to tolerate an African-American actress kissing a white actor on screen. 

-I wonder why Brian and Irene need to take so many naps.

-Irene knows racist exists but wants it locked away, forever, though Brian doesn't feel the same way, discussing several tragic lynchings to his sons ignoring Irene's cutting glares.

-Irene doesn't pass as white, but rather cleverly hides her true appearance, knowing that's what must be done so she isn't profiled.