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Starring: Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams, Adam Brody, Keith David, Issa Rae, Sterling K. Brown, Myra Lucretia Taylor
Story:
Satirical comedy drama written and directed by Cord Jefferson. American Fiction (2023) follows Monk (Jeffrey Wright), a frustrated novelist who’s fed up with the establishment that profits from “Black” entertainment that relies on tired and offensive tropes. To prove his point, he uses a pen name to write an outlandish “Black” book of his own, a book that propels him to the heart of hypocrisy and the madness he claims to disdain.
We’ll add the best quotes once the movie is released and we’ve had a chance to watch it, but for now, here’s a small selection.
Quotes:
Moderator: How did you come to write this book?
Sintara Golden: What really struck me, was that too few books were about my people. Where are our stories? Where is our representation?
Moderator: Would you give us the pleasure of reading an excerpt?
Sintara Golden: [reads from the book] “Yo Sharonda! Girl, you be pregnant again? If I is, Ray-Ray’s going to be a real father this time around.”
Arthur: Monk, your books are good, but they’re not popular.
Arthur: Editors, they want a Black book.
Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison: They have a Black book. I’m Black, and it’s my book.
Arthur: You know what I mean.
Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison: Look at what they publish. Look at what they expect us to write.
Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison: I just want to rub their noses in it.
Arthur: “I be standing outside in the night.”
Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison: Deadbeat dads, rappers, crack. You said you wanted Black stuff. That’s Black, right?
Arthur: I see what you’re doing.
Paula: We believe Mr. Leigh has written a bestseller.
Arthur: We sold your book.
Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison: No.
Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison: [referring to his book] As a joke!
Arthur: The most lucrative joke you’ve ever told.
Paula: Now is Stagg a pseudonym?
Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison: Yeah.
Arthur: Mr. Leigh can’t use his real name.
Paula: Is this based on your actual life?
Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison: Yeah. You think some b**h a** college boy can come up with that s**t?
Paula: No, no. No I don’t.
Wiley: Can I ask what you were in for? Was it murder?
Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison: You said that, not me.
Ailene Hoover: They ran three hundred thousand copies.
Lisa Ellison: [to Monk] Your books change people’s lives.
Arthur: They’re offering four million dollars for the movie rights.
Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison: The dumber I behave, the richer I get.
Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison: This has gone too far.
Kenya Dunston: Stagg R. Leigh is still on the run from authorities.
Arthur: [to Monk] You haven’t done anything. It’s not like they can arrest you.
Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison: I wish I could go back to not selling books.
John Bosco: There’s already so much buzz because of the movie deal.
Arthur: Michael B. Jordan is circling.
John Bosco: We want to put him on the cover in one of those scarves, I guess you would call them, tied around his head.
Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison: A do-rag?
John Bosco: Do-rag. That’s it! Do-rag, and a tank top, with the muscles showing.
Paula: Ooh. Somebody call the fire department!
John Bosco: We’re thinking we can get it out in time for Juneteenth!
Sintara Golden: Is it bad to cater to people’s tastes?
Clifford Ellison: People want to love you, Monk. You should let them love all of you.
Trailer: