By Terry Sherwood
If this picture was produced in the late 70’s, it would be termed Blaxploitation. The influx in that time of black male and female action heroes doing all the things that Clint Eastwood as Harry Callahan was doing. In some ways it is good to see themselves on the screen, but poor in that it perpetuates stereotypes often starting new ones that are being corrected or trying to be. Princeton James’ feature debut Queen Rising is a new mystery drama starring April Hale in the role of a troubled true crime writer who in effect becomes part of her story.
Madison is on the brink of losing her family home that she has sworn to always have. Madison comes from an abusive home in which she and her younger sister witnessed her mother’s murder at the hands of her stepfather (Henry E. Reaves, III Esq) who also died under strange circumstances.
The case was popular in its day and has since gone cold. Today she is a schoolteacher in a system that doesn’t pay teachers what they are worth. One day she is approached with a life-changing financial opportunity to turn her story of the ‘College Town Slayings’ into a book.
Madison accepts causing her to revisit painful and often horrific memories of once terrorized community. Digging deeper into the past events, bloodshed erupts around her friends, and boyfriends, as if someone is hunting her down. Shady media people, lying friends, and horrific sudden murders begin to loom over her forcing a confrontation of unsettling self-discovery.
Written by Allison Chaney and Henry E. Reaves III, Queen Rising suffers marginally by being too slick in its depiction of the film world. The film looks like ‘Daytime TV’ since this is what some of the actors work in it is no surprise, particularly the lead April Hale. The school when the events happen is glossy, fashion and grooming at is forefront, language is precise and so the people particularly the men seem to have one dimension or simple window dressing. The film world lacks the grit and conviction of a slasher/ campus murder genre which is hard to get.
Moving aside from the film gave some strong social comments on black people’s lives, and what they face each day even today. The danger with that is such expositions do little for the character one is trying to show would be better suited with back story and humanity
Queen Rising works as a mystery with deceptions, hidden meanings, and ideas at a strong pace, some of the grandstanding on a social issue. The characters work the world well if not slickly with lots of camera movement through halls, outdoor scenes, and flashbacks handed in a non-confusing manner.
The minor point is you are in the genre with the likes of The Girl With All The Gifts, Tales from the Hood series, the recent huge hit Talk to Me and the brilliant documentary Noire Horror so the stakes (No pun intended) need to be higher that can grab. Queen Rising does grab with an effective plot just doesn’t hold on for very long.
Bloody Flicks 