Race matters. It always has and remains that way today. Even with that notion, there is no way Nella Larsen or anyone else could have ever imagined that her 1929 novel, Passing, would be as relevant now as it was almost 100 years ago.
With the discussion of race, legitimate or performative, still remaining at the forefront of society, it makes sense to adapt Larsen’s novel into a film. In her writing and directorial debut, actress Rebecca Hall brings Larsen’s story to the screen. Passing is a tale about the reunion of two childhood friends (played by Ruth Negga and Tessa Thompson) and the impact that one of the friend’s decision to “pass” has on both women’s lives.
Again, the relevance of this story can’t be understated, but does Hall have the chops to make a nearly 100 year old story work for today’s audiences?
The leading ladies of Passing put on a masterclass in acting. Honestly, Old Bay seasoning and everything might be the only duo that comes close to being as satisfying as Negga’s and Thompson’s combined performances.
Negga is a firecracker who mesmerizes with pure seduction. She plays Clare with a genial flamboyance that captivates the moment the slight twang in her voice hits your ears. Don’t get it twisted – Negga brings more to the character than sultry looks and sounds as she also draws you in when she delves beyond the character’s physical attributes and into what motivates her displays. However, the former hit harder.
Thompson takes a more measured but just as powerful approach. While the strength in Negga’s performance is charisma, Thompson makes her mark with restraint. She skillfully plays Irene with a calm that emotes a surface-level strength and confidence but peppers that with subtle tones and expressions that indicate there’s much more going on underneath.
Both ladies bring a welcomed steadiness to acting out the powder keg of a situation before them. Beautifully portraying the yin to each other’s yang should easily have Negga and Thompson in the best actress/supporting actress awards conversations.
Not to be out done by the Negga-Thompson duo, Hall also makes quite the name for herself. If her debut is this well done, her trajectory as a filmmaker will be light years ahead of her solid acting career.
As a writer, Hall crafts a story that’s pretty true to the film’s source material. Her script covers the obvious theme of race in an authentic manner that pulls no punches, but it goes much deeper. In addition to addressing race, issues such as social class, gender roles, and sexuality with equal adeptness.
In the director’s chair, Hall shows the savvy of veteran filmmaker with a number of key choices such as filming in black and white (obvious given the subject matter but still cool) and shooting at a smaller screen ratio to give the film a more intimate feel. Yet, her decision to move Passing at a slower pace is the one that pays the biggest dividends.
When telling a story involving race and the complexities that accompany it, there’s a temptation or even an expectation to dramatize the emotional weight the topic bears. Hall wisely chooses to go against that notion and sets a tone that doesn’t exaggerate things but it’s still poignant and thought-provoking.
With career-best performances from two of Hollywood’s most consistent actresses and a skillful story teller at the helm, Passing is a film that deftly handles the most complex part of an already complex issue and the intersections it features. It won’t wow you with heavily dramatized scenes and dialogue because it moves at a slower pace and with more delicacy than most stories of this kind. However, those qualities make Passing more enduring and definitely a must-see.
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