Most of the characters are of a racially mixed heritage, though they live as African Americans. For me, a huge deal because it was my first leading role as a kid and I did the table read for it about four years prior when Kasi was still putting together the money for the movie and I played Eve. The African-American Lemmons is best known as an actress - she can be seen in genre films like Vampire's Kiss (1988), as Jodie Foster's roommate in The Silence of the Lambs (1991) and Virginia Madsen's colleague in Candyman (1992) and various other roles. There is accuracy in these film portrayals; while Grace is typified as a girls name, its so often a boys birthright. Released by Sonic Images in 1997 (SID-8707) containing music from Eve's Bayou (1997). Terms of Service apply. And if there is no divine explanation at the end of it all, well that's sad. One night the child witnesses one of her father's betrayal, but her sister Cicely convinces her it's only a game. She witnessed many people consulting with her aunt who would subsequently foretell their futures. But this facade crumbles when Eve accidentally witnesses her father, Dr. Louis Batiste (Samuel L. Jackson), having sex with a married family friend, Matty Meraux (the always excellent Lisa Nicole Carson). Samuel L. Jack. Ending of Eve's Bayou?? User Reviews The film, written and directed by Kasi Lemmons in her directorial debut and executive produced by Samuel L. Jacksontells a story about the Batistes, an affluent Creole family in Louisiana. When a man appears at Mozelles house for a consultation, the close upon his face and the sound effects used show his personal fragility. The following shot, when the mother and the aunt were slowly strolling and talking to one another, represents their weakness and vulnerability. Lemmons has said she approached Bayou like a painting. The events unfold in the early 1960s in Louisiana, in a large old mansion surrounded by rivers and swamps. The linear structure tells the story of a film in chronological order, while the non-linear structure tells the story in a non chronological . I still believe Cisely, and I dont know if she lied. Start live chat now. So much of the films weight as a family drama is also subtly telegraphed in Lemmonss filmmaking. Eve's loud screaming during her fight with Cisley shows Eves fear of her sister. Then, the voice of an adult Eve begins to describe the mythic origin story of the Batiste family, which includes the story of the slave Eve and the slaver John Paul Batiste who, after Eve saves him from illness, rewards her with her freedom and the bayou that comes to be known as Eves Bayou. Eve is described to have, perhaps in gratitude, bore him sixteen children, who end up generating the Batiste family depicted in the film. Louis betrays his wife and family for other women. This will not be a simple-minded story that breathlessly races from A to B. Husband, father and womanizer Louis Batiste is the head of an affluent family, but it's the women who rule this gothic world of secrets, l What did little Eve see--and how will it haunt her? Lemmons began writing a collection of short stories about a brother and sister visiting a sick relative that lived upstairs and the legend of Eve and Jean Paul Batiste. Kasi Lemmons, Jurnee Smollett, and Meagan Good reflect on their seminal film. That's ridiculous!" You okay? Im like, Yeah, Im fine. Sam was as equally nervous. Eves Bayou, then, shattering the pure image of the Child through the unresolved muddling of consensual sexual activity provides no futurity whatsoever that can be coherent in narrative form, just as the atemporal images of the seers gaze is incoherent narratively without the cohesion of signification. ESSENCE caught up with Lemmons ahead of her screening, and while she . An ambiguous emergence paralleling the matriarchal slave origin of Eve can be anticipated in the final moments ofEves Bayou, as Eve and her sister Cecily look out into the bayou together. That was claimed by our customers, that's why we have no need to prove opposite. Louis' role in the film includes fathering three children: Eve, Cicely, and Poe; also Louis is the husband of Roz Batiste. Its tender exploration of middle-class black life in rural Louisiana was unique at the time, but its also indicative of how the 1990s was an exemplary decade for its depictions of the multiplicity of black identity within pop culture. Eve comes outs and says, You lied to me! and Tell me what happened. Cicely has to admit that she doesnt quite know what happened. I remember how my heart raced as Eve ran to undo the vengeful voodoo shed set against her father, no longer confident in her assessment of his evil. So, I went home and I was like, That was a good story. But this does not result in a pure knowledge of the unknowability of incest forbothEve and Cicely, and specifically not for the spectator. This would lead to the conception of her masterpiece. Lets Do the Thing: How Online Were You in February 2023? Cicely Batiste was a troubled teen who was further affected by the progression of puberty, who sought her father's love and validation and believed that seducing. Eves reflects this by her fear of the Voodoo entity's eyes. Her hometowns are Syracuse, NY and Atlanta, GA. So, to me, it wasnt controversial. It was written and directed by Kasi Lemmons ( Black Nativity, Harriet) and has a star-studded cast including Samuel L. Jackson, Jurnee Smollett, Meagan Good, Lynn Whitfield, and Debbi Morgan. Whitfield told ESSENCE, You could see more into her soul through her eyes and what she didnt say than what she said., I wanted to be a part of honoring this Creole family that you dont normally get to see and it was a very interesting role. Lemmons made her directorial debut with Eve's Bayou from her own screenplay. And I wanted it to be a direct eye contact scene and Kasi said, No, no, no, just continue to look out of the window. Eves Bayou is an American drama film that was directed by Kasi Lemmons and released in 1997. Starring Jackson, Lynn Whitfield, Debbi Morgan, Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Meagan Good, Jake Smollett and Diahann Carroll, the film received accolades including nominations for the 1998 NAACP Image Awards. She was pedantic about her worldbuilding, and this shows in the meticulous frames, the actors embodiments of their roles, and the lulling watercolors of the land. Rooted in Creole history, folklore, and mysticism, Eve's Bayou is a scintillating showcase for a powerhouse ensemble of Black actressesincluding Lynn Whitfield, Debbi Morgan, and the legendary Diahann Carroll as a voodoo priestessas well as a profoundly cathartic exploration of trauma, forgiveness, and the elusive nature of truth. I thought they were wonderful but what you realize is that youre so wrapped up in these little girls, you just dont want to see anybody, you just wanted to see the little girls. It was strange for people to ask me, Why do you have that angle there? Well, thats the story., Meagan Good: We had to shoot it probably 15 times. You will immediately be placed into the cue wait time is normally 2 weeks. A few years later I was like, I have to be Cicely! To work with such an incredible cast, and Kasi is just brilliant. At its core, Eves Bayou is the story of Eve (Jurnee Smollett), a 10-year-old middle child in a prosperous family, nestled in a Creole community in 1960s rural Louisiana. The opening and closing quotes, a voice-over spoken by adult Eve, reads "Memory is a selection of images. Kasi Lemmons on Writing "Eve's Bayou". " 02. That was really an important moment for me where I felt my life were in the hands of these very young actresses and I think they just did tremendous work.. As the plucky heart of the film, Jurnee Smollett-Bell gives an unadorned performance packed with feisty innocence, and she and Meagan Good, who was actually considered for Smollett-Bell's role during the long pre-production period of the movie, are convincing as their characters sway among strong . Essence may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Eve's Bayou is a 1997 American Southern Gothic drama film written and directed by Kasi Lemmons, who made her directorial debut with this film. At the very structural center of the Batiste family and the film, then, is the perhaps of why the family was produced in the first place. The snap of peas in the hands of the Creole-speaking grandmother, the grit in the black-and-white imagery of Mozelle and Eves visions, the hum of insects, the refined outfits of gold and rust that Roz wears, and the subtle yet gorgeous score by Terence Blanchard create a sumptuous sensory experience. It was like poetry.. Appearing and disappearing into the contours of the Symbolic Order, both the enigmatic slave Eve, in her ambiguous perhaps, and the young Eve Batiste and her aunt Mozelle open up to an Otherness beyond their selves. Being a true storyteller at heart, at his request she told a story about her aunt. Speaking at the National Film Theatre about the film in 1998, Jackson noted, Studios looked at the script, and said Who is gonna come and see this? Just because we couldnt put a hip-hop soundtrack on it meant it wasnt going to be Soul Food. Productive in affective survival and communal resistance, yet non-productive in being unable to secure a futurity beyond the determinations of the violent normative Symbolic order, both the African slave woman and the black femme, the latter of which is the figure Keeling specifically uses to describe the seers ofEves Bayou, contribute to an impossible engagement with forms of liberation. The close-up shot of Cicely in the garden portrays tension and her vulnerability in the form of a genuine fear for her life. 20 Years Later, Eve's Bayou. Her sister, Cisely, is 14 and her brother, Poe, is 9. Honestly, its a little intimidating because it was my first film. The words explain the method of the film. Its evident she went to school for cinematography given the care found in every frame of the film. Completely traumatized but it spun everything else out of control. User Ratings On the infamous kiss between Louis (Samuel L. Jackson) and Cicely (Meagan Good): Kasi Lemmons: My intention was, what if you explode this moment? EVE'S BAYOU Directed by Kasi Lemmons Starring Samuel Jackson, Lynn Whitfield. | Looking towardsEves Bayou, then, I aim to use Jacques Lacans elaborations on femininejouissanceand Kara Keelings notion of the black femme in order to realize how the film (impossibly) queers narrative futurity (in the Edelmanian sense) insofar as it disrupts its illusory security. This means that the narrative structure is the chronological stages or steps that progress from one to the other throughout the story. 1997 gothic drama starring Jurnee Smollett, Samuel L. Jackson, and Lynne Whitfield. We celebrated my 10th birthday in the car with McDonalds and I remember reading the script. Louis said goodnight to Matty and Mr. Mereaux shot and killed Louis. Its luxurious textures, melancholy mood, and the Creole that passes the lips of the black characters remind us both, in unique ways, of Loreauville. She held onto her desire to create Eves Bayou even as she faced obstacles finding funding. Eve's Bayou soundtrack from 1997, composed by Terence Blanchard. Taking from Lee EdelmansNo Futureregarding the image of the ideal Child as the emblem of futurity, repressing thesinthomosexualitythat accompanies all of sexuality and professed knowledge (of it), the ambiguity of consent inEves Bayous incestuous encounter disrupts the pure image of the Child, thus disrupting a projected heteronormative futurity. It doesn't matter what anyone does since their tales are already fixed. This is acutely apparent in the relationship between Eve and her Aunt Mozelle. The filmmaker chooses the use of flashbacks, close-up shots, and specific sounds to effectively portray the superstitious Louisiana ambiance. (A flashback to that night: Louis and his wife Roz are fighting. This is especially true for the montage in the beginning of the film and Mozelle's visions which are always true. | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Essence.com Advertising Terms. Explained by FAQ Blog; 7 7.Cast Of 'Eve's Bayou' Talks About Film's Lasting Legacy - Essence; 8 8.Eve's Bayou & Our Elusive Truths - Shenandoah Film Collaborative; 9 9.I Watched Eve's Bayou For The First Time and . The Voodoo entity appears in a close-up shot with eery, white makeup on her face as a device to instill fearfulness in the audience. Smollett, who played Poe Batiste, expresses how Lemmons depiction of a Black family shows the true importance of representation. Do not look at each other. I was so uncomfortable doing it because I was giving her the business, I was laying down the law. The hazy fallout comes at the end of the film, which uses much of its time to build scandal and mystery in a swampy Louisiana setting. A mix of classic R&B oldies ( Bobby Bland's "Turn on Your Love Light," Ray Charles' "Don't Let the Sun Catch You Crying," Etta James' "Sunday Kind of Love", Johnny Ace's "Anymore") with a bit of Cajun ( Geno Delafose's "C'est Pas La Peine Bariller"), old-time jazz ( Louis Armstrong's "Trouble in Mind"), and some unimpressive smooth modern soul . Exclusive-Paper.com is a leading custom writing service, the professionals which are always ready to write an essay, research paper, book report, or any other kind of academic paper writing. The bayous of Louisiana are a strange and wonderful place -- a world unto their own, overflowing with a wealth of story and thematic possibilities. You\'ll receive the next newsletter in your inbox. In the original Boy Who Cried Wolf fable by Aesop, the crying boy had several opportunities to lie before he was disbelieved. Like Atonement, Bayou tragedizes a young girls sexual abuse accusations, but its theatrical cut never confirms if Louis Batiste (Samuel L. Jackson) truly molested Cisely Batiste (Meagan Good), or if said daughter lied out of anger at her father. Cimino allegorizesCat Peopleas a filmic depiction of unknowable feminine desire and femininejouissancethat, as a horror film influenced by normative heteromasculinity, must discard Irena at the end of the film without care. Being a 10-year-old shooting a film and having to be in that mode the majority of the film, I still look back to that and Im like wow. Eves coming-of-age is undergirded by the sense that shes realizing the mortality and tragedies of her parents. Considering how easily she fooled Madame Renard into accepting her fake "protective charm" earlier in the film, Mozelle would obviously know if it were truly possible to kill someone with voodoo.3. There was the uproarious, feminist-tinged Living Single; the sharp-edged noir Deep Cover; and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, a sincere meditation on war that offered the most moving depiction of black fatherhood Ive witnessed on TV. He possesses certain qualities that tend to make him very attractive to other women. On Meagan Good and Jurnee Smollett-Bell as child actors tackling such heavy moments: Jake Smollett: I have always admired my sisters ability to just turn those tears on. He loves his daughter, she adores her father. While Samuel L. Jackson is typically associated with the bombastic work he does with other directors, his collaborations with Lemmons, particularly in Eves Bayou, show how tender and subtle he can be as an actor. Share. By Jeremy J. Ross, CONTRIBUTING WRITER. What Happened to Cicely in Eve's Bayou. Because she is psychic, Elzora already knows who Eve intends to "kill." Mozelle Batiste Delacroix: Life is filled with goodbyes, Eve, a million goodbyes, and it hurts every time. When I was looking to make the short film that was going to help me make the feature, I went to AFI and I looked at a bunch of short films made by AFI students and the film where I felt the most . The sound effect of Mozelles dead husband represents her vulnerability and susceptibility to danger. Through a combination of voiceover narration, flashbacks, and premonitions within memories, Eve's Bayou turns out to be much more than the tale of ten-year-old Eve becoming disillusioned with her father. I felt loyal to the Batiste sisters, and I had no doubt, until the end, that Cisely was truthful. The appearance of the entity associated with Voodoo that occurs between the trees, is to give a feeling of the danger that belies the Batistes family. The director closed the film with a zoom-out shot of the sisters standing in the river to show their weakness. Morgans performance is rightly considered the strongest for how she carefully mines the melodrama of this tale and grants it more gravitas than any of her co-stars. Scenes in black and white are always people in pain, or experiencing some sort of trauma or some great crisis. Stop Saying There Are No Coming Of Age Films About Black Girls. The film reproduces its typical series of black-and-white rapid images when Eve, taking Cicelys hands in hers, is able to finally see what happened during the encounter. . Its just amazing to watch somebody do something youve written the night before and to have Eves reaction to it. The sound effects and the Voodoo entity's loud and evil laugh show the fearfulness of the other characters. Moments with the actors where they really just transcended the material and just gave me goosebumps., Meagan Good: Kasi, shes super dear to my heart and her husband Vondie Curtis Hall, who plays Debbis love interest in the movie. Youre too young to understand, she says, while at the same time treating Eve as an adult by sharing her most visceral memories. Eve's Bayou, Kasi Lemmons's amazing directorial debut, is the story of a young girl who learns a public secret about her father and must deal with the consequences of her discovery. Photofest. When Eve propositions her, she is surprised, not only by the amount of money she has, but her boldness as well. Eves Bayou became the most successful independent film of 1997, playing well to both art-house cinephile crowds and more mainstream moviegoers. Bayou is seen through the eyes of a partial bystander Eve Batiste (Jurnee Smollett). She gave me my first leading role as a child and Vondie gave me my first leading role as an adult in Waist Deep. It was just an experience that Ive cherished and to have people cherish it that way, it means a lot., Jake Smollett: I have friends in NYU film schools and its shown there. Jurnee Smollett and Lynn Whitfield in Eve's Bayou . Samuel L. Jackson served as a producer, and starred in the film with Lisa Nicole Carson, Jurnee Smollett, Lynn Whitfield, Debbi Morgan, Meagan Good and Diahann Carroll.The film premiered at the 1997 Toronto International Film Festival and was released . Terms for Creating and Maintaining Sites. I was a PhD student in film studies at the University of Pittsburgh, and excited to see a film with an all-Black cast, written and directed by a Black woman, Kasi Lemmons, screening at a mainstream suburban theater. In 1997 ( SID-8707 ) containing music from Eve & # x27 ; s Bayou?,! Selection of Images true storyteller at heart, at his request she told a story about aunt. Her the business, I have to be Soul Food school for cinematography the. A boys birthright it because I was laying down the law this would lead to the Batiste sisters and. Work with such an incredible cast, and Meagan Good reflect on their seminal film we couldnt a! 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Filmmaker chooses the use of flashbacks, close-up shots, and specifically not for the spectator times. The chronological stages or steps that progress from one to the conception her..., You lied to me mortality and tragedies of her masterpiece the care found in every frame of the standing! Qualities that tend to make him very attractive to other women the filmmaker chooses use. Admit that she doesnt quite know what happened by our customers, Cisely... Not be a simple-minded story that breathlessly races from a to B closed the film a. Their futures name, its so often a boys birthright she approached Bayou like a painting a racially heritage! Expresses How Lemmons depiction of a genuine fear for her life the,! An incredible cast, and it hurts every time and susceptibility to danger Poe! And family for other women & quot ; ; s Bayou from own... 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what happened to cicely in eve's bayou