Image by mohamed Hassan from Pixabay In honor of Black History Month, I want to highlight the work of some African-American filmmakers by showering love and adoration onto some movies that (in my humble opinion) have not been given their due. A couple of weeks ago, I talked about Gina Prince-Bythewood’s romantic drama Beyond the Lights. Today, I want to shine a light on the sophomore directorial effort from F. Gary Gray (Straight Outta Compton, The Fate of the Furious): the female-led ensemble heist flick Set It Off.
Why is this movie worth your time? Keep reading to find out. 😊 What’s It About [NOTE: This section contains minor spoilers for “Set It Off.” If you’d rather see the film for yourself, skip to the next section.] Set It Off stars four African-American women living in Los Angeles and who are best friends: Lida “Stony” Newsome (Jada Pinkett Smith), Cleopatra “Cleo” Sims (Queen Latifah), Francesca “Frankie” Sutton (Vivica A. Fox), and Tisean “T.T.” Williams (Kimberly Elise). At the start of the film, Frankie is working as a bank teller but is summarily terminated because she recognized someone who was part of a recent robbery (although she didn’t personally know him). Down on her luck, Frankie joins Stony, Cleo, and T.T. at work as a janitor despite their boss Luther (Thomas Jefferson Byrd) disrespecting them and paying them poorly. As the women tire of their job, Cleo suggests they rob a bank to make some extra money. Frankie enthusiastically agrees, but both Stony and T.T. are initially reluctant to go along with the plan until both experience family-related trauma that persuade them otherwise. Thanks to Frankie’s inside knowledge of bank security protocols, the women pull off a series of bank robberies but end up getting the attention of LAPD Detective Strode (John C. McGinley) as well as deal with the problem of safely storing their stolen cash Blood begins to spill and relationships for formed and strained, causing some hesitations among some of the women who are certain that their luck cannot last forever. But, of course, they decide to do one last heist Stony becomes hesitant to continue their escapades but the women agree to one final bank heist before leaving town for good. And, as one might expect, it doesn’t go as planned as Stony, Cleo, Frankie, and T.T. do their damnedest to keep themselves from a life behind bars. Why It’s Worth Watching As far as heist movies go, they tend to be very hit-or-miss for me. Upon reflection, I think that this subgenre of action flicks just has so many pitfalls when it comes to writing, direction, and pacing that it can fall into that they’re more likely to fail than succeed. One of those pitfalls is the likeability, relatability, and chemistry of the lead “heisters.” Luckily, in the case of Set It Off, the lead ensemble exceeds expectations on that front. All four female leads in this movie play their roles exceptionally well. For one thing, the characters feel fleshed out enough for a movie like this without ever being overbearing with any strenuous side plots. They also avoid succumbing to racial stereotypes in their personalities and behavior by feeling different enough from one another as well as fulfilling some more traditional archetypes that often occur in heist movies. And while this characterization could be viewed as formulaic, the charisma and relatability of these women help the audience buy into their characters from start to finish. Ultimately, what makes this ensemble great is how they avoid one-dimensionality by exhibiting multiple behaviors based on the environment and situation. They can be strong and determined when robbing a bank, they can be funny and easygoing in private together, they can be scared when facing the prospect of death or watching a friend or relative die, and they can be vulnerable in spite of prior acts that would indicate that they’re hardened women from unfortunate circumstances. Needless to say, Set It Off works largely on the backs of Smith, Latifah, Fox & Elise collaborating onscreen to make each and every one of them lovable and empathetic criminals. Beyond the performances, F. Gary Gray seems to understand the kind of movie this could be and does a pretty standup job embracing the good of that while also avoiding the bad. Primarily, Gray utilizes his measly budget of nine million dollars to great effect in terms of the action and cinematography. While the robbery, chase and shootout scenes feel as bombastic as they should, the more intimate, character-based scenes feel more like an indie drama about four friends on hard times that give Set It Off a sense of tonal balance and variety that makes for some pretty good filmmaking. In addition to that, Gary’s handling of social commentary in the film could have easily come off as preachy or overly sentimental. Fortunately, his sensibilities (also on display in my favorite film of his, Straight Outta Compton) work well in this respect. Whether it be Stony losing her younger brother to police brutality or T.T. having her son taken from her custody, these characters represent examples of the brutal nature of society without ever making that the purpose for that character’s existence. Thus, one can watch this movie and enjoy it as an action heist flick on its own terms. However, if you’re looking for a movie of this genre with a bit more heart and ideas to explore, Set It Off undeniably fits that description. Other than being an underappreciated great film, Set It Off is also (in my humble opinion) an important film. Due to its critical and commercial success back in 1996, I argue that (along with films like Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown) it helped lay the foundation for modern female-led heist movies like Ocean’s Eight and Widows that would not be as good as they are without this movie. To be clear, there are important movies in a historical or cultural sense that aren’t necessarily movies that I enjoy, Fortunately, this film happens to be both. All in all, Set It Off may not be the most popular heist movie. But it unquestionably deserves to be seen and talked about by more people than it has. I hope I’ve convinced you today to take a chance on it; I’m confident that you’ll be entertained and (perhaps) even emotionally moved by the time the credits roll. Have I convinced you to check out F. Gary Gray’s Set It Off? What’s a movie that you feel is underappreciated? What opinions of mine do you find absolutely ridiculous? Let me know in the comments below. Until next time, this has been… Yours Truly, Amateur Analyst
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Austin McManusI have no academic or professional background in film production or criticism; I simply love watching and talking about movies. Archives
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