Review of Alma’s Rainbow: A Rereleased Gem of Black Female Empowerment

Ayoka Chenzira is a pioneering black director whose films have been finding a renewed audience with younger generations as she enters her 70s. Her 1994 feature debut Alma’s Rainbow has been restored and rereleased. It is a coming-of-age movie that is both funny and warm, albeit a bit scrappy.

The story is set in a Brooklyn townhouse owned by Alma (Kim Weston-Moran), a prim and proper woman who runs a beauty parlour on the ground floor. In this all-women space, Chenzira luxuriates in her female characters. Historically, the inner lives of black women have seldom been depicted in film, giving Alma’s Rainbow a precious quality, making it feel like a gem that needs to be treasured.

Alma lives in the house with her teenage daughter Rainbow, played with charisma and spark by Victoria Gabrielle Platt. Rainbow has been skipping school to perform with a hip-hop street dance crew and is known in the neighbourhood as a tomboy. Despite this, Rainbow is starting to think about boys. Alma, who has worked tirelessly to make a success of her beauty parlour and be an independent woman, is not impressed. She has strived to build a better life for Rainbow, which makes her strict: “Keep your pants up and your dress down,” she instructs her daughter.

Into their lives swans Alma’s sister Ruby, portrayed by Mizan Kirby. Ruby is a nightclub singer who has been living in Paris and carries the air of a superstar diva, though the truth is she can’t even afford a taxi fare to the city. What follows is a poignant struggle for teenage Rainbow’s soul, with all three women living under one roof.

The set design is another highlight, with its wood-panelled bathroom and high ceilings giving the house the aura of a palace. Nowadays, actual royalty might be among the few who can afford such a place in Brooklyn. The film also shines through its gorgeous costumes, which add to the sense of putting these women on a pedestal, at a time when the rest of the industry was mostly ignoring them.

Alma’s Rainbow is a heartfelt film that places its female characters at the forefront, exploring their inner worlds with sensitivity and care. It’s a nostalgic trip back to the 90s, bringing new insight and appreciation for Chenzira’s directorial debut.

Alma’s Rainbow is in UK cinemas from 3 August.

Source: The Guardian