“One Of Them Days” is certainly one of them ones.
And it’s been some time since we’ve had this sort of moviegoing expertise. It’s an unique comedic movie that includes a star-studded forged. It’s certain to make audiences shout and stomach snigger. Much more, it’s getting a theatrical launch when so many movies prefer it are going straight to streaming providers.
“It means everything,” Rae mentioned throughout a press junket.
Starring Keke Palmer, who additionally served as an govt producer, and SZA in her first appearing position in a characteristic movie, “One Of Them Days” is a buddy comedy that follows within the footsteps of traditional Black movies of the ’90s and early aughts, most noticeably the “Friday” franchise. The pair play Dreux (Palmer) and Alyssa (SZA), roommates on the verge of eviction in the event that they don’t safe the hire cash Alyssa’s boyfriend spent. Because the clock ticks, hijinks ensue. It’s a hilarious trip with surprises at each flip, however what makes this movie much more particular is that it stars two Black girls, a rarity within the buddy comedy area.
Rae has introduced up her desires of bringing a movie like this to the display screen in earlier interviews. “Rap Sh!t” alum Lawrence Lamont and Syreeta Singleton introduced that to fruition. Lamont, the director, learn Singleton’s screenplay for the movie 4 years in the past and fell in love with the story. He mentioned the characters and their “yin and yang” friendship stood out. With Dreux making an attempt to get her shit collectively and Alyssa being dickmatized and free-spirited, their misadventures problem their relationship.
“I think that’s what true friendship is,” Lamont instructed HuffPost. “Drew and Alyssa, from day one on the page felt like two girls that we just knew we grew up with. They might argue, but at the end of the day, they’re gonna love and uplift each other.”
Rae added, “You just know these people. And that was important to us to just make sure that we had elements of who Keke is and who SZA is, to put in these characters and make them whole.”
The Jan. 17 theatrical launch is a win in itself for Rae and Lamont. With fewer comedies and even much less Black female-led productions making it to theaters, Rae is celebrating “One Of Them Days” getting a launch date on Martin Luther King Jr. Weekend. However she feels the stress for it to defy Hollywood’s expectations.
“There is a pressure for it to be successful so that studios and the industry can always do that thing where it’s like, ‘Oh, Black people wanna see this. Oh, women are coming to movies,’” Rae mentioned candidly. “We need to make more of this. This is just a good, fun, funny time. And we want people to be able to go bring their friends, bring your man, whoever, to the theater and just laugh out loud. It means a lot that this is in theaters because this doesn’t happen for us often.”
Although the stress is on, “One Of Them Days” has already discovered favor amongst audiences, debuting with an ideal rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Lamont echoed Rae’s level, emphasizing the truth that “One Of Them Days” is an unique script. With studio executions constantly mining present IP for its blockbuster productions, there’s much less alternative for brand new concepts to get in entrance of audiences.
The Detroit-born director takes delight in not solely its originality however how “One Of Them Days” pays homage to a monumental period in movie historical past when going to the flicks to see one thing with a star-studded Black forged wasn’t so uncommon.
“We are the sum of our influences,” Lamont mentioned. “When I pitched on this film, I pulled references from all the classics that I could find that felt like this movie. Because I mean, yes, there are a lot of classics that happened in the ’90s, especially in LA, but not that many buddy comedies were Black women. We definitely stood on the shoulders of Spike Lee, John Singleton, the Hughes Brothers, Gina Prince-Bythewood.”
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From Dreux’s West Coast flannel to the cinematography and right down to the large booty Debo terrorizing the neighborhood, “One Of Them Days” could also be set within the current day, however there are nods to Black ’90s movies all through the comedy. It even costars Black cinema vets like Katt Williams and Vanessa Bell Calloway. Newer faces within the film embody Patrick Cage, Lil Rel Howery, Janelle James and Maude Apatow, amongst others.
Rae and Lamont have large desires for the movie that they hope come to fruition.
“I hope it’s their [fans’] movie. I hope they want to come back,” Rae mentioned. “And I hope that it becomes a classic that’s referenced with the other canon of our iconic films. That’s my dream.”
