The Photograph Review

Since their heyday in the late 90s and early 2000s, there has always been a demand for black love stories on screen. Not counting last year’s Queen and Slim because some of us like our love stories without the use of black trauma as the catalyst, you would have to go back to 2014’s Beyond the Lights to find a film that gave us a legitimate non-comedic black love story. The Photograph seeks to fill that void with its story about Michael and Mae coming together based on the discovery of a photograph of Mae’s mother, deceased photographer Christina Eames, and their relationship as they learn more about eachother and Mae learns more about her mother. Is this the new black romantic classic we’ve been waiting for? Unfortunately, the answer is no.

The Lakeith Stanfield-Issa Rae coupling is uneven at best. As usual, Stanfield brings his A game. However, this performance is different because he’s playing a character that is a lot closer to an everyman than the nuanced roles we’ve seen him in throughout his career. Stanfield brings a subtle charisma to the Michael Block character that allows him be convincing as a man in the midst of a whirlwind romance without being unrealistically sentimental.

Rae is shakier as Mae. Her nonverbal cues set a tone that has you believing Michael and Mae will join Love Jones’s Darius and Nina and Brown Sugar’s Sidney and Dre on the list of our favorite black movie couples. Those hopes are dashed as soon as they begin to converse. Rae’s performance is robotic and devoid of any feelings even in what might be the film’s funniest moment that features a hilarious exchange between Mae and Michael’s young nieces. That lack of range keeps her off rhythm with Stanfield the entire film.

The supporting performances were equally as impressive as Stanfield. Rob Morgan tugs on your heart strings again and delivers another strong performance in limited screen time as the present day Issac. Chanté Adams and Y’lan Noel have a chemistry that makes them the most believable couple in the film and the scenes from their romance of yesteryear gives you all the sparks Stanfield and Rae lacked.

Off-camera, the positives for The Photograph start with the music. The film features a nice soundtrack of contemporary cuts and classic singles as we visit the past and present-day romances, but it’s Robert Glasper’s jazzy score that gives the film its wings. Whether in modern day New York or 1980’s rural Louisiana, Glasper finds the right notes to compliment every scene he’s given.

Things fluctuate when it comes to writer-director Stella Meghie. Meghie deserves kudos for her alternative approach to the black romantic film. Breaking away from the norm of having black men being villainous in some way, if not the film’s actual villain, she gives us a story with black male characters in a positive light. They aren’t perfect, but they are not the nefarious characters we’ve seen in previous black films and it makes for a more realistic film about relationships in general. Another high point for Meghie is her use of color and lighting, specifically in the Louisiana scenes.

The thing that plagues The Photograph behind the camera is the structure of the script. The plot is intriguing and has the potential to rank among the best black romantic films ever made, but the execution of its elements feels woefully incomplete. We’re never told what shaped Christina. We know We never know the specific details of why Christina and Mae are estranged. We’re never given the backstory as to how Christina and Issac came together or what Michael and Mae see in each other. These unanswered questions render the non-linear storytelling used to bounce between the film’s couples meaningless to the point where it feels more like you’re scrolling through an Instagram feed and less like a love story. Given the 105-minute run time, an additional 15 minutes to address those points would have given us a more complete film.

The Photograph has a lot of positives. Stanfield adds another stellar performance to his diverse filmography and proves why he should be among Hollywood’s top leading men sooner than later. Morgan and Evans also give standout performances and Glasper’s score should be downloaded on every phone with access to a music streaming service. What ultimately keeps The Photograph from reaching its potential is a limited performance from Rae and plot holes that rob it of the substance needed to make it the new black romantic classic we’ve been looking for instead the Valentine’s Day go-to for 2020. You could do worse with your movie money, but definitely temper your expectations for this one.