Plot Details: This opinion reveals major details about the movie's plot.

I'd say that I was disappointed by English black gay film-maker Isaac Julien's 1991 "Young Soul Rebels," except that my expectations were not particularly high. I think that his earlier short film "Looking for Langston" is overrated in part from sympathy for the difficulties Julien had with the heirs of Langston Hughes (who refused permission to use any of Hughes's words in a film portraying his sexual orientation as gay). I liked Julien's 2002 documentary on American blaxploitation movies, BaadAssss Cinema would like to see his documentary on Franz Fanon ("Black Skin, White Mask," 1996) and some other shorter documentaries Julien has directed.

"Young Soul Rebels" (YSR) was Julien's first feature-length film and first fiction film. Set in 1977 (Queen Elizabeth's silver jubilee year, pre-Thatcher), it unconvincingly mixes the story of two young black (AfroCaribbean) DJs (Caz played by Mo Sesay is gay, Chris, played by Valentine Nonyela is straight) who have a pirate funk radio broadcast called "Soul Patrol" on weekends with a "thriller" story about a murder in a park that is closed at night but in which men connect sexually with men. Of course, the murderer is white and the victim black.

In turning off the Saturday night "Soul Patrol" program, the killer switched the boombox to recording instead of off. He then discarded the boombox in the bushes, where it was found by the younger sister of the straight DJ. Eventually, he plays the tape with the killer's voice and come-on line. It is someone whom Chris knows, but he fails to recognize the voice. Of course, the killer comes after the tape, which leads to a lame chase and a fiery (literally) finish. There are unsubtle homages to "Blow-Up" (Antonioni) and "Blow-Out" (De Palma) in this plot, but a great deal of it is implausible to me, not least the resolution.

It provides opportunities for white policemen to menace Chris (who does not want to turn over the recording of the murder after having been accused of perpetrating it), but suspense and chases are clearly not a Julien forte.

The intersection of race and (homo)sexuality is Julien territory. The heterosexual romance is not very convincing (and the black woman who works for the BBC and is trying to help Chris also has a white girlfriend, who, as played by Sophie Okonedo is particularly abstract or cardboard a character).

That the gay DJ is more conventionally masculine than the somewhat foppish straight one is schematic, but not unbelievable. I'm sure that there is some subtext about the contrast of intraracial heterosexual relationship in contrast the interracial gay and interracial lesbian ones, as well as the fatal park coupling. Someone as preoccupied with race/sex politics as Julien could not have failed to notice this schema that fits with the "race suicide" condemnation of homosexuality by some black nationalists.

On the other hand, Dorian Healy as Ken, the earnest punk rock DJ (and distributor of the Socialist Weekly in an expensive designer t-shirt), is the only standout in the cast older than the girl (Danielle Scillitoe, I think) who plays Chris's preteen sister.

The ending (after the "resolution" of the murderer stalking Chris and Caz part) is contrived, though providing gooey guilty "All You Need Is Love" pleasure.

The struggling entrepreneurs inevitably call to mind "My Beautiful Laundrette" (even if they are not getting it on with each other), a far better movie with far better performances all around. Both movies have menacing neo-Nazis in seedy East London areas. The city is not burned-out (despite the conflagration near the end) as in Stephen Frears' next (and considerably less good) about sex and race in multicultural Britain, "Sammy and Rosie Get Laid." The upbeat finales of it and YSR (and the French coming-of-age romantic comedy Just a Question of Love) are especially similar, but primarily the biting off of more than the film-makers can chew.

The audience roots for Caz and Chris to succeed, but it is difficult to muster much enthusiasm, because they are such unoriginal "rebels," and Chris is so eager to sell out. Perhaps if I had been able to see the movie in 1991 (or some time before "Noah's Arc" debuted on cable), I'd have found it fresher, though the amateur detective/thriller part would have seemed just as perfunctory and unsatisfying to me.

Nina Kellgren cinematography is good and the sound-track is lively, but the writing and/or editing and/or directing make for an odd combination of jerky and rambling. The sex scenes are inept (protracted without being graphic).

(The only bonus features are trailers for five movies, including YSR).

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© 2007, Stephen O. Murray

Caz and Ken fit into showing "gay pride" (JPS246's writeoff) and the film is very low-budget British (Ifif1938's English Finds one). And thanks to Sue for adding this to the database!






Recommended: No

Viewing Format: DVD