‘The Hate U Give’: A Poignant Story with a Powerful Message

Photo courtesy of 20th Century Fox.

The Hate U Give was released in theaters on September 7, 2018. The film’s premise follows Starr Carter (Amandla Stenberg), a teenager who lives in Garden Heights, a predominantly black neighborhood, and attends a predominantly white prep school. The balance between these two worlds is destroyed when she witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood friend at the hands of a police officer. As she faces pressure from all sides, Starr must find her voice and figure out how to use it. The film is based on the novel, The Hate U Give, by Angie Thomas.

The film’s story is one that will be remembered for years to come. It was emotional and gripping as it’s extremely relevant to what’s going in real life today. It had me feeling all the emotions: anger, sadness, grief, shock, and even happiness.

After I finished the film, I had to process what I just watched. I was blown away. It’s one of the best films that I’ve watched in a long time. There were many times where it felt so real to the point where it wasn’t acting.

Amandla Stenberg’s performance as Starr Carter is one of their best. Their ability to portray their emotions through their facial expressions is mind-blowing to me. Starr is the best part of the film. She’s the catalyst and the main protagonist. She becomes a vital character in the story. Stenberg delivered here.

Russell Hornsby and Regina Hall are incredible in this. Both actors gave authentic performances and uplifted Stenberg’s performance as Starr. A quote said by Hornby’s character, Maverick, stuck out to me:

Don’t ever let nobody make you quiet.

To see Anthony Mackie do a complete 360 from portraying the selfless and kind Sam Wilson in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to portraying the intense and not-so-friendly King in this film shows his range. He’s incredibly talented.

Issa Rae’s April Ofrah is someone who I’d want to be friends with. Her speech given during her first appearance in the film is moving and sends chills down your spine. One of my favorite quotes from the film is one she said:

Division is how they win. Unity is how they crumble.

While Stenberg is a star, KJ Apa is not. His acting didn’t feel authentic to me. I do know that Kian Lawley was originally supposed to portray Chris but Apa replaced him. His performance was mediocre which is fine since Starr is the main character and we want her to shine more than Chris.

I wasn’t a huge fan of Sabrina Carpenter either. Her performance wasn’t bad but again it didn’t feel authentic to me. Hailey made me so angry. It’s not only infuriating but it’s incredibly sad that people still think like she does.

This film is a prime example of how to utilize the power of cinema. We need more films like this that tell important stories. This is a film everybody should see. It’s a message that should never stop being spread.

 

 

The Hate U Give is available to stream on Hulu with a premium subscription.

Director: George Tillman Jr.

Cast: Amandla Stenberg, Russell Hornsby, Regina Hall, Anthony Mackie, Issa Rae

Producers: George Tillman Jr., Wyck Godfrey, Marty Bowen