Antebellum Review: An Imaginative Mind Game That Explores The Sins of the Past

Release date: September 18, 2020
Running time: 105 minutes
Starring: Janelle Monáe, Eric Lange, Jena Malone 

Successful author Veronica Henley (Monáe) finds herself trapped in a horrifying reality and must uncover the mind-bending mystery before it's too late.  She seems to be stuck between worlds and figuring out the relationship between the two might be her only hope.  But she has to be patient because of the forces around her, including a dangerous overseer (Lange) and madame (Malone).  

Antebellum is an imaginative mind game, one that explores the sins of the past with a decidedly modern touch.  The film straddles two worlds and effectively portrays them and draws connections between them.  The story goes back and forth between these two, and you are always wondering where you will end up.  But regardless of which world you end up in, the film has an amazing style to it.  It has a wonderful color palate that causes splashes of beauty in some very ugly scenes.  There are bright colors, natural embellishments, and a generally bright mood for a movie that can be so dark.  And ever present in this film is some really fantastic, powerful music.  It hits you from the very first scene and doesn't let up throughout.  It really highlights the filmmakers background in music videos and they definitely show that they can make even very ugly themes visually beautiful.  The opening sequence of this film instantly sets the tone that this is going to be a beautiful movie that has an ever present sense of dread.  But it is definitely a welcome reminder that although the two worlds are very different, they have touches and similarities that appear throughout.

Antebellum is not only a wonderfully stylish movie with an amazing atmosphere and fantastic music, but it truly is a world come alive.  And this is partly due to the performances.  Monáe is a revelation in this film, forced to do double duty but commanding the screen whenever she does.  Like the film, she straddles the two worlds perfectly and her character is very different depending on where she is.  Many of the characters are forced to balance this dichotomy, including Lange and Malone, but no one has to do it with as much force or variation as Monáe  And on top of the solid performances, the sets of Antebellum equally contribute to the world coming alive.  No matter which side of the film you are on, the sets look wholly authentic and real.  It helps to draw you into this film and fully embrace this unique and interesting setting. 

But Antebellum, despite being a beautiufl film with solid performances, also has a lot of darkness to it.  Aside from the aforementioned sense of dread, there are a lot of terrible, ugly scenes in both worlds.  They are decidedly more brutal in one, but there are still disturbing scenes and observations throughout.  The opening scene tied this altogether, and made the film feel like a terrible, but beautiful dance.  And despite all these touches, the story line maintains an air of mystery throughout until a conclusion that tries to tie everything together.  A lot of criticism about this film is that there is not a wider, more overarching message that is explored, and if you are hoping for something more historically accurate or more prophetic, then this is not the movie for you.  I enjoyed the horror take on the story and the brutal depiction of some terrible sins of the past, and did not feel let down by the ending as other critics have.  It is unfortunate that in a time when there is so much focus on progressive social issues and the treatment of black individuals, that Antebellum couldn't have a stronger message or more relevant conclusion.  But if you just experience this movie without trying to draw a larger message from it, then you will enjoy it. 

Antebellum is an imaginative mind game that explores the sins of the past and present through strong performances, a mysterious story, and some fantastic, dread-inducing music.

Watch it.

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