My Review: Chris Rock’s “Good Hair”
I had the pleasure of attending a screening of Chris Rock’s new documentary Good Hair on Friday, and I absolutely loved it.
The documentary starts off with Chris’s two beautiful daughters, and was shocked to hear his youngest ask him “daddy, why don’t I have good hair?” And so began an exploration into the billion dollar enterprise of “good hair”. I literally had NO IDEA this world even existed, let alone to what extent.
Chris delves into why thousands of women feel the need to have “good hair”. Why they will spend thousands of dollars on a weave, or inflict injury upon themselves with the toxic “relaxer”. Why men can’t even begin to think of touching their wives head, and why they would spend more on their wife’s hair – than their own mortgage payment. It’s unflinching and moving.
Chris jetted from Los Angeles to Atlanta – and even India to find out how important good hair really is. The most poignant part of the documentary, for me, was when Chris traveled to India, where one of their top exports is human hair. It was difficult to watch as women have their heads shaved in a religious ceremony, only to have the church turn around and sell the hair for a profit. This particular ritual makes this church the most profitable – second only to the Vatican. It was really unbelievable to watch.
Chris sets off to talk to hair professionals, stylists, actresses and singers to get to the root of the pursuit of good hair. The documentary was eye-opening to say the least. Chris proved to be a masterful host, bringing humor – and sometimes the sad truth to the what some women will do for a good head of hair.
It’s no wonder this documentary won the Jury Prize Award at the Sundance Film Festival. It really is a gem.
Bottom line? I loved it. Chris Rock does a perfect job of exploring the topic completely – while keeping us laughing the whole time.
Good Hair opens near you this Friday on October 23rd.
October 19th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
Please take a moment to check out my documentary film BLACK HAIR
It is free at youtube. 6 parts including an update from London, England.
It explores the Korean Take-over of the Black Beauty Supply and Hair biz..
The current situation makes it hard to believe that Madame C.J. Walker once ran the whole thing.
I am not a hater, I am a motivator.
Plus I am a White guy who stumbled upon this, and felt it was so wrong I had to make a film about it.
self-funded film, made from the heart.
Can it be taken back?
Link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p96aaTSdrAE
October 22nd, 2009 at 9:48 am
I just read a good article about Chris Rock at: http://www.ebmpublishing.com. And even though I may disagree with him about the Black Woman’s hair debate the article was good.