Movies for the Season: Soul Food

Entertainment has always had a knack for setting the tone for the holidays, especially when it comes to music and film. When talking about Thanksgiving one of the best movies to emphasize the importance of family and why we should be thankful for its foundation is Soul Food.

Written and directed by George Tillman in 1997, Soul Food chronicles the family story of Josephine “Big Mama” Joseph told from the perspective of her grandson Ahmad. Josephine has three daughters: Terri portrayed by Vanessa L. Williams, Maxine portrayed by Vivica A. Fox and Robin “Bird” portrayed by Nia Long. All three of the Joseph sisters are married and the struggles that come with marriage are detrimental to the film’s story. Ahmad is the eldest child of Maxine, who is the only one of Josephine’s children to have children of her own and the majority of the film’s story is told from Ahmad’s point of view. The focal point of bonding for the Joseph family is their Sunday dinners at Big Mama’s house.

From Ahmad we learn that the Joseph family has a strong bond built by Big Mama. Though the Joseph family has its issues like any other, mother Josephine is the glue that holds everything together and keeps everyone in check. When Josephine falls comatose due to her diabetes the Joseph family slowly, but surely starts to unravel. Terri who is the eldest of the Joseph sisters is in a marriage that is on the rocks and Robin, who is the youngest of the Joseph sisters is a newlywed to ex-con Lem, who is a good man with a criminal background who is struggling to maintain employment due to is criminal record. The trouble caused by Robin’s attempt to rectify Lem’s dilemma leads to conflict in their marriage.

Eventually Terri’s marriage becomes completely undone when her husband Miles portrayed by Michael Beach has an affair with the black sheep of the Joseph family, cousin Faith, portrayed by Gina Ravera. Robin’s husband Lem nearly assaults her for conspiring with her shady ex-boyfriend Simuel, portrayed by Mel Jackson to secure employment for Lem behind Lem’s back. This event led to Terri sending a violent member of the family named cousin Blim to assault Lem in retaliation, leading to the arrest of both men as a result. Following the unraveling of the Joseph family, Josephine passes away after briefly awaking from her coma to give Ahmad one final objective to bring the Joseph family back together, which he successfully accomplishes.

Soul Food is definitely a film that almost any family could relate, but especially Black American families. Every Black family has a Big Mama, I certainly did and we can all relate to those Sunday dinners with family that are more than just a great time to eat, but to also share loving recollections with one another. Soul Food has been one of my all time favorite films since it first came out. I remember my mother taking me and my older sister to the movies to see it when it first came out and I remember everyone else in the world giving the film “two thumbs up” during its time of reception. The film also featured a great soundtrack. The music from the artist on the album including: Boys 2 Men, Total and Dru Hill really set the tone of the film and we’re also a great reflection of that time period in the late 90’s.

As a writer, Soul Food has always been one of my favorite stories ever told. In a way I feel like it’s the perfect story. I love how it’s both a cinematic masterpiece and a realistic story to which I could genuinely relate. I also love the format of the film’s story being told mainly from the perspective of a child. Seeing movies where the kids were in the leading roles navigating the story were always big inspirations to me as a kid. Soul Food is also one of the greatest stories of Black cinema. Soul Food is also a great film for the season that teaches the viewer that nothing is more important than your relationship with your family, so be thankful if you have one.