University Paper on New York as Minstrel Stereotype

Tiffany Pollard, a.k.a. New York from VH1 has been a polarizing figure ever since she bursted onto Flava of Love. She was wild, crazy, and coniving. People loved her for being a train wreck, a ghetto-mess, and great, mind-less, entertainment. But others hated her for giving black women a bad name. Black women were already suffering from being stereotyped in reality TV. It seemed like almost every show had their token black, b*tch. Then New York arrived and happily took that role, even calling herself the HBIC. Her success on VH1 is a by product of being this extreme caricature, even so much, her recent show made her into a cartoon. New York has starred in six reality series and looks to be doing a seventh with I Love New York 3. 

A paper was found online about Tiffany "New York" Pollard and how she portrays the new millinium steroetype of Jezebel and Sapphire. It talks about the similarities between the two including their extreme sexual appetite and her domineering, controlling nature. You can read it here. Here's an excerpt. 

As we have previously iterated, the lead female characters on Vh1’s I Love New York represent contemporary examples of two of the most pervasive mediated caricatures of African American women during the 20th century—the Jezebel and Sapphire. Tiffany Pollard as the new millennium Jezebel is typecast in the same one dimensional way as the blaxploitation Jezebel of years past, and as such, she evokes and enacts many of the same troubling stereotypes. “New York’s” lustful appearance, promiscuous demeanor and manipulative behavior make her the perfect Jezebel for the 21st century. And, much like the caricature she embodies, most things about “New York” are a profound exaggeration, from her lengthy highlighted hair weave and thick protracted false eyelashes to the four inch stiletto shoes she dons, she is as complex as a Dick and Jane preschool text.

The Jezebel stereotype depicted black women as seductive temptresses with an animal-like appetite for sex. The Sapphire stereotype was depicted as being loud, overbearing, and aggressive. Does New York embody these minstrel caricatures? What do you think?

THE WACKNESS REVIEW

“I look for the dopeness in life, while you look for the wackness.” Touche Olivia Thirlby. The Wackness is the tale of the neurosis of an 18 year-old pot dealer set to the backdrop of New York City and 1994’s hip-hop scene. Josh Peck from Nickelodeon’s Josh and Drake stars in the lead as Luke Shapiro. Oscar Winner Ben Kingsley (Ghandi, Schindler’s List) plays Dr. Squires, his shrink whom trades therapy sessions for pot. Him and Shapiro build a strange friendship, and in turn, Shapiro falls for his step-daughter Stephanie. Method Man and Mary Kate Olsen co-star respectively as Luke’s supplier and Squire’s conquest, rounding out the oddest cast I’ve even seen together.



I love slow films that allow you to breathe in the settings and characters, however, this film drags. Despite it’s richness, the energy definetly seems to be lacking. Writer/Director Levine may have been going for the sultry summer New York Vibe. Whatever it was, it didn’t connect with me. On a better note, who knew Josh Peck could breathe life into a role completely opposite from his Nickelodeon TV persona. He holds his own against Kingsley and even becomes more pleasurable to watch as the film progresses.



The muted cinematography is interesting and there are some beautiful, well-composed shots...



...but at times some scenes come of as amateurish and ironically they mostly involve Kingsley. I don’t feel his performance was worthy of the Razzie nomination, but his character did not seem fully drawn. A lot of his motivations didn’t make sense and I often found myself wondering which Squires we were going to get. The feeling of nostalgic 1994 and hip-hop really pop, but sometimes seem to bang you over the head with referencing. For example, in 1994, Rudy Gulliani had just been inaugurated as mayor and began to implement “punishments” for carrying noisy portable radios, and obstructing public with graffiti and public drunkenness. The characters seemed to reference this every twenty minutes, yet it had no influence on anything that happened past Squires and Shapiro’s jail sentence.

CULTURAL INTROSPECTION:
Shapiro has a social awkwardness, which causes him to be friendless, hence his dependency on Dr. Squires, and quick obsession with Stephanie whom only has to give him the time of day. He attributes this awkwardness to the fact that he thinks too much. Throughout the film, people tell him to relax and enjoy being young; Look for the “dopeness” in life, they allude to. SPOILER ALERT: At the end, when Stephanie won’t return his feelings, he leaves. She tries to explain herself, but he says no. He’s never had that feeling before. She asks him what feeling and he responds, having his heart broken. He leaves for college, seemingly glad that even though it didn’t work out, he’s had the experience. He found the “dopeness” out of a wack situation and feels he’s grown from it. It’s often said that depression is self-serving. Tragedies pile on because we lose the ability to appreciate any good in life. With the country in economic turmoil, it might not be a bad suggestion for people to chalk up their losses and start appreciating what they’ve learned about fragility.

BLACK PERSPECTIVE:
Even though the 1994 hip-hop scene serves as its own character, the other two black characters lack any interest or even a second look. As complex as the leads are, the blacks are as dense as any other stereotype you might come across. Method Man plays Luke’s supplier and with a horrible Jamaican-accent. All he does is supply Luke the weed. He doesn’t give us any insight into Luke’s life or even the New York scene (besides the perpetual Gulliani bashing). He could disappear and the movie would still function without losing a step. Hip-hop is highly regarded by Shapiro, sharing his discovery of music from Biggie and A Tribe Called Quest, although we’re never really given any understanding to his love of hip-hop and it seems to be challenged by everyone else in his life. At the end, he listens to a rock mix tape given to him by a buyer. Subtext being he’s expanding his horizons. While the ideology is fine, the problem is that blacks nor hip-hop music never seem to be fully valued in this film.



EXTRAS:
The Wackness garnered Levine a Best First Screenplay nomination at the 2009 Indpedent Spirit Awards and The Grand Jury Prize at 2008’s Sundance. He won the 2008 Audience Award at Sundance as well.

RATING:
= 2 stars
= 2 black fists

***Note: This rating misrepresents how much I liked the film. I would recommend this to anyone craving something different from the normal Hollywood blockbuster.