Synopsis
A woman in a Hollywood dubbing studio struggles with race and preconceptions.
Illusions
1982 Directed by Julie Dash
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It seems too good to be true, a film that addresses directly erasure, sexism, white supremacy, and film. It feels like everything I've been saying for months is packed in less than 40 minutes of cinema. The central premise is wrapped around the multifaceted title, directly addressing the idea of films as illusions, as illusory depictions of history, as distortions of reality that serve as stronger dictionaries of reality than reality itself. From there, it illustrates the impact of how (or how not) African-Americans are depicted in film, showing the story of a singer who must sing to dub over a white woman's voice. If not for a solitary and anomalous advocate behind the scenes, she would not only be…
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Julie Dash's Illusions is about the same "talkie" film deception that Singin' In The Rain revolves around with a singer recording the voice for another actress, but instead about being the change in the politics of the film industry, Illusions deals with the real politics of sexism and racism at the time. The fact that an african american women is being unseen and her voice is being taken advantage of becomes much more serious than the fun little lip synching in Singin' In The Rain. The film is shot like it is from the era, even though it was made in the 80s. It's not visually stylish save for a few great shots, but it gives an essential different perspective on a transformative time period.
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The cinematic treatise that all filmmakers-of-color should be required to watch. Julie Dash's 1983 short-film investigates the illusory mythmaking of the Hollywood factory, as we follow a light-skinned black-female-executive and a dark-skinned black singer hired by the exec to dub a white star's voice. These two women deal consciously with Hollywood because, in the words of the exec, "people remember movies more than history, and I want to be a part of that history-making-process." Its didacticism will certainly come off as heavy-handed to some, but it is a necessary didacticism which illuminates just how crucial the institution of cinema really is. Illusions champions the unspoken, unseen, unheralded workers that make every frame of a film possible. Surprise, surprise: most of…
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Pretty fucked up how a movie set in 1942 is still incredibly close to the reality of 2017
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At first I really had to pee but then quickly stopped caring because of how much I liked this!! Forgot I even had to pee by the end which is the mark of cinematic excellence
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Dreamt of seeing this for two years and today was finally that day. JULIE DASH DOES MORE IN 32 MINS THAN THAN ANY FILM ABOUT HOLLYWOOD. Hail who? La La where? What player? Singin in the when?
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A revisionist homage. A restructuring of our perceptions of an era that lays bare the complexities and the prejudices that are at work behind the scenes. It operates on a near-Dunye level of self-reflective insertion, but opts for re-enacting a period piece rather than crafting the quasi-doc approach. Feels as much of a bygone era as it does a timeless classic. Dash has done something pretty spectacular here.
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The best aspect of Illusions is the one shot that features the film dubbing process in a unique way, using projections and glass reflections to showcase the singer, the producer, and the film being dubbed all in one shot. Illusions has a strong thesis regarding the inclusion of black women in classical Hollywood while embodying the production of 1940s film seemlessly.
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Really impressive short film. Production quality isn't the greatest, but it more than compensates with powerful performances and themes. There are some great shots too.
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At first I really had to pee but then quickly stopped caring because of how much I liked this!! Forgot I even had to pee by the end which is the mark of cinematic excellence
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