Black and White (1999 drama film)

Black and White
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	James Toback
Produced by	Daniel Bigel Michael Mailer Ron Rotholz
Written by	James Toback
Starring	Robert Downey, Jr. Gaby Hoffmann Allan Houston Jared Leto Method Man Joe Pantoliano Bijou Phillips Oli "Power" Grant Raekwon Claudia Schiffer Brooke Shields Scott Caan Mike Tyson Elijah Wood and Ben Stiller
Music by	American Cream Team
Cinematography	David Ferrara
Edited by	Myron Kerstein
Production company	Palm Pictures
Distributed by	Screen Gems
Release dates	September 4, 1999 (1999-09-04) (Telluride) April 5, 2000 (2000-04-05) (United States)
Running time	98 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$12 million
Box office	$5,541,431

Black and White is a 1999 American film directed by James Toback, starring Robert Downey, Jr., Gaby Hoffmann, Allan Houston, Jared Leto, Scott Caan, Claudia Schiffer, Brooke Shields, Bijou Phillips and members of the Wu-Tang Clan (Raekwon, Method Man, Ghostface Killah, Oli "Power" Grant, Masta Killa and Inspectah Deck) and Onyx (Fredro Starr and Sticky Fingaz).

The film also features Ben Stiller as a sleazy police detective, as well as Mike Tyson playing himself. It had its first showing at the Telluride Film Festival on September 4, 1999, followed by a second screening at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 15, 1999. It had its theatrical release in the United States on April 5, 2000.

Plot

Rich Bower (Power) is a mover and shaker in the world of rap music (he's involved with a number of other licit and illicit business ventures as well), and his apartment is a favored meeting place for musicians, hangers-on, and hipsters who want to seem cool, including a clique of white kids who want to be on the inside of what they consider the coolest scene of the day. Sam (Shields), a filmmaker, is making a documentary about Rich and his circle, with the help of her husband Terry (Downey), a closeted homosexual who doesn't feel at home in this milieu.

Dean (Houston) is Rich's friend since childhood and a talented college basketball player. He is offered a deal by a bookmaker, Mark (Stiller) to throw a few games for a price. Dean takes the money against his better judgment, and he soon realizes how much of a mistake he made when Mark turns out to be a cop hoping to dig up dirt on Rich. Rich in turn discovers that Dean might be forced to tell what he knows to stay out of jail, and he decides that Dean has to be killed; however, rather than murder his friend himself, Rich asks one of the white kids who hangs out with him, who seems especially eager to prove himself, to do it for him. The kid, however, is actually the son of the District Attorney.

Cast

Production

Most of the script was improvised by the cast. Only Claudia Schiffer's part was fully scripted.

Because she had not had them done previously, Claudia Schiffer had to have her ears pierced especially for the large hoop earrings worn by her character. In addition to sporting fake dreadlocks, Brooke Shields also wore a nose ring for this film, for which she had her nose temporarily pierced.

Reception

Review aggregate Rotten Tomatoes reports that 39% of critics have given the film a positive review based on 80 reviews; the critical consensus states, "The atmosphere is affecting, and the story, at times, is compelling, but with a lean script and limp direction, Black and White doesn't add up to much."^[1] Metacritic, which assigns a weighted mean rating out of 100 based on reviews from film critics, the film has a rating score of 47%, aggregating 27 reviews.^[2] Roger Ebert gave the film three out of four stars.^[3]

In the United States, Black and White grossed $5,241,315 in its four week release.^[4]

See also

• List of American films of 1999
• Black and White (soundtrack)

References

External links

• Black and White at the Internet Movie Database
• Black and White at Rotten Tomatoes
• Black and White at Metacritic