Jillian Makes Black or White Worth Watching
Film: Black or White (2014). Young Actress: Jillian Estell, age 10.
Ever since her mother died in childbirth, Eloise (Jillian) has been raised by her wealthy, white maternal grandparents. She's well-adjusted and happy with them, but when she's seven, her grandmother suddenly dies in a car crash, and her hard-drinking grandfather Elliot (Kevin Coster, Waterworld) starts drinking even more in his grief. Eloise's black paternal grandmother Rowena (Octavia Spencer, The Great Gilly Hopkins) pushes him for a shared custody arrangement, fearing that he can't raise her by himself.
Elliot and Rowena lock horns, but they both love Eloise and respect each other enough that they could probably reach an agreement. Things change when Rowena's son Reggie (Andre Holland), Eloise's deadbeat, drug-user dad, reenters the picture. Just as Elliot can't admit that he has a drinking problem, Rowena can't admit that her son isn't fit to be a father and doesn't really want the job, either.
Eloise between Elliot and Rowena at a pool party
This movie isn't a masterpiece, but it is a solid family drama. I got the impression that it was trying to be shockingly honest and smart in how it addressed race relations in America, and while it doesn't really accomplish that - Elliot and Rowena's issues with each other are never really about race - it's still worth watching.
For me, the highlight of the movie is Jillian's performance. Not only is she as cute as can be, but Eloise is also written and acted very naturally. When Elliot breaks the news that her grandmother has died, Eloise doesn't immediately burst into tears or take a deep breath and try to be brave, like we've all seen before. She goes in a different direction: Smelling the alcohol on Elliot's breath, she asks if he's been drinking, then argues with him about a friend's name, then finally admits, "I'm super sad," and starts to cry. From puzzled to petulant to devastated, Jillian conveys each emotion very well.
Eloise is a child in the middle of a custody battle, but she's never the wide-eyed "prize to be won" cliche of Dakota Fanning's Lucy in I Am Sam. She's more like Onata Aprile in What Maisie Knew, in how unaffected and unassuming she is. The movie does fall prey to some cliches, though. Elliot, like too many father figures in film, has a few "bumbling dad" moments, but they're brief enough and somewhat excused by his age that they aren't as painful as usual.
Photos of Jillian on the set and at the premiere here.
Ever since her mother died in childbirth, Eloise (Jillian) has been raised by her wealthy, white maternal grandparents. She's well-adjusted and happy with them, but when she's seven, her grandmother suddenly dies in a car crash, and her hard-drinking grandfather Elliot (Kevin Coster, Waterworld) starts drinking even more in his grief. Eloise's black paternal grandmother Rowena (Octavia Spencer, The Great Gilly Hopkins) pushes him for a shared custody arrangement, fearing that he can't raise her by himself.
Elliot and Rowena lock horns, but they both love Eloise and respect each other enough that they could probably reach an agreement. Things change when Rowena's son Reggie (Andre Holland), Eloise's deadbeat, drug-user dad, reenters the picture. Just as Elliot can't admit that he has a drinking problem, Rowena can't admit that her son isn't fit to be a father and doesn't really want the job, either.
Eloise between Elliot and Rowena at a pool party
This movie isn't a masterpiece, but it is a solid family drama. I got the impression that it was trying to be shockingly honest and smart in how it addressed race relations in America, and while it doesn't really accomplish that - Elliot and Rowena's issues with each other are never really about race - it's still worth watching.
For me, the highlight of the movie is Jillian's performance. Not only is she as cute as can be, but Eloise is also written and acted very naturally. When Elliot breaks the news that her grandmother has died, Eloise doesn't immediately burst into tears or take a deep breath and try to be brave, like we've all seen before. She goes in a different direction: Smelling the alcohol on Elliot's breath, she asks if he's been drinking, then argues with him about a friend's name, then finally admits, "I'm super sad," and starts to cry. From puzzled to petulant to devastated, Jillian conveys each emotion very well.
Eloise is a child in the middle of a custody battle, but she's never the wide-eyed "prize to be won" cliche of Dakota Fanning's Lucy in I Am Sam. She's more like Onata Aprile in What Maisie Knew, in how unaffected and unassuming she is. The movie does fall prey to some cliches, though. Elliot, like too many father figures in film, has a few "bumbling dad" moments, but they're brief enough and somewhat excused by his age that they aren't as painful as usual.
Photos of Jillian on the set and at the premiere here.