Well, I actually have a couple of big things to say about the aftermath of the Oscars, but I have to save them for later. I said I was writing about this movie today, and Big Rell has already alerted his folks that I’d be writing about Chappelle. So I will.
I said it yesterday in the comments and I’ll say it again–go right now and see Chappelle’s Block Party. Fuck your job and your boss. Get up now and head to the theater.
First thing to understand going in–this isn’t a comedy. It’s a documentary of a concert hosted by a comedian. Don’t misunderstand–Dave’s pretty funny through most of the movie, but I wouldn’t go to see that looking for a yuckfest. Go see that movie if you’re a fan of hip hop or if you’ve never had the pleasure to see a concert featuring ?uestlove. ?uest still puts on the best live show in the business, and every act (save for Kweli) is known for doing a dope live show even without him. With him? You get some amazing arrangements of amazing songs done by two different amazing bands. More than once, I stood up and clapped.
And I don’t even like to stand up at basketball games. That’s how the music moved me in this one.
But this documentary may be one of the greatest clarifications on what Dave tries to do with his comedy. Like no one I can remember, Chappelle has done a fantastic job with his art of showing how remarkably similar people really are, even if they seem diametrically opposed. While much of Chappelle’s comedy is “black people do this, white people do this,” it’s done in a way that attempts to illustrate a commonality between human beings. Though we do what we do through cultural vehicles, people are pretty much the same across the bar. We’re all perpetually looking for ways to get by and all continually searching for a way to have a good time. That’s people in a nutshell. We can go deeper into the social constructs, biases, and barriers that make it difficult for us to get along and understand each other, but we’re all pretty simple when that stuff is removed from the equation.
Yes, I know that’s like saying water and Kool-Aid are the same if there’s no powder, but i think you get where I’m going.
To illustrate this, Dave just walked up and down the streets of Dayton, OH handing out free trips to his concert. If you wanted a ticket, he’d give you one. Didn’t matter if you were a teenaged black kid, the Central State band, or white women who I assumed were octogenerians. Who ever wanted to roll could roll.
And they all had a blast hanging out in Bed-Stuy listening to Kanye, Com, dead prez, Jilly from Philly, Erykah, the Roots, the Fugees, and others.
A good time’s a good time if you can chill out long enough to enjoy it.
Dave’s said before that’s how he sees the world and his work, so I’m not dropping rocket science. What hit me at the Block Party was just right he is in his belief in commonality. Being the music junkies we are, Aden, Pierce, and Tiffany stayed until the last credits ran.
And we weren’t the last people to leave.
The last people to leave were a pair of middle-aged ladies who stayed the whole way, nodded their heads and waving their hands for the entire movie. Right before we left, two almost-old folks got up and left.
I doubt it’s because those people just loved hip hop that much. I think it’s more that the film captured a helluva good time, and that carried over to the audience.
In the midst of all the controversy that surrounds Dave, I think that point gets lost. He’s got the greatest knack for identifying with people without compromising himself. If only more of us could find a way to do that.
So if you like great music, check it out. If you wanna see some really interesting human interaction, check it out. And if you wanna laugh, check it out. There are some scenarios that are almost too perfect to have been strictly unscripted nonfiction.
And if you see it and don’t like it, that’s okay. Not everyone’s blessed with good taste like I’ve got.