Commentary by Bel Hernandez
Where did all In The Heights believers go?
Last week we were all out in full force on social media and all over the place. The love for the film and the Latino community was in full bloom — as I have never seen it before.
Now, I don’t see much on social media encouraging people to go see the film.
What discouraged you? Was it the headlines in the mainstream media that called the In The Heights performance at the box-office a “flop,” that it “bombed,” that it was “dismal,” and “stumbled,” and “disappointed”?
Maybe it was the complaints from Afro-Latinos that the “dark-skinned” Latinos were not represented? Yes, I can see how they might feel this way. However, Lin Manuel Miranda the writer/producer of the film addressed and even apologized for it, saying that he heard the complaints and vowed to do better. It is not like he can do something about right away. The film is already made and out in the theaters. So that will need to be rectified in the future.
So how are we just going to turn our backs on In The Heights and not go see it again this weekend or encourage others to do the same?
Is this all it took for In The Heights, whose storytelling, excellent writing, and acting we thought was great last week, for us to lose interest in supporting? Didn’t I hear and read on social media how great the dance numbers and choreography were (sorry, La La Land — not even close)? Is that all it took for us not to be promoting this second weekend? Where did our belief go?
Because no matter how much money In the Heights makes this weekend, it will be less if we do not support it. If we don’t act, you let the naysayers win.
Is this what we want? For the critics to be proven right when we have it in our power to do something and help the film make more money?
We need to get back into the theaters and spend the dollars to make more money at the box office for the film. Because a hit movie is not always made on the first weekend, the momentum can build. Mi gente: wake up, get excited and rally the troops back into the theater.
There is hope. This from Comscore senior media analyst Paul Dergarabedian in an article in the L.A. Times. “In the Heights” could prove to have legs well into the summer box office season, Dergarabedian says. “The good news is that the film has received strong reviews and positive reaction from audiences, so at least ‘In the Heights’ delivers the goods and makes for happy subscribers and [moviegoers].”
If WE ALL get back in the theater and support In the Heights this second weekend, we won’t have to wait 10 years for another film like an all-Latino-created, all Latino-leads movie. Perhaps the next one will even star a darker-skinned Afro-Latino.
Let’s get back out into the movie theater by the hundreds of thousands this weekend so more movies with Latinos can be made. Because it won’t matter how light or dark-skinned we are, we won’t see many more of these films if this one fails.
We have the box-office power. Why give it away? Let’s use it. Show up again at the theater. You are investing in the future of Latinos in Hollywood.
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