Even though I didn’t catch this movie right out of the gate,  I just had to go see it because of all the controversy surrounding this  documentary.  So I persuaded my friend to  come with me to check out the film despite the fact she’s not the biggest Chris Rock fan.

If you need a little background on the film, you can refer  to my earlier post.  I’m going to go  right in to my review.

I will start off with  what immediately happened following the film.   I noticed a couple sitting behind us who were leaving the theater.  And me being me, I’m always interested in  other people’s thoughts and opinions.  So  I decided to ask them what they thought of the film.   The guy stated that he thought it was well  “balanced”.  Hmmm….well balanced I  thought.  Now I didn’t ask him to  elaborate but based on what I thought he meant I would have to agree.  The movie provided the audience with a great mixture of the forces behind a woman’s hair in the black community. 

History
Rock gave you some ‘back in the  day’ history of black hair with public figures such as Al Sharpton and Ice T,  two men known for proudly sporting their perms.

Facts and Research 
He took you behind the scenes to  the perm manufacturing companies to show you how perm is made and just exactly  what it consist of, sodium hydroxide (NaOH). 

He went on a quest overseas to  India to see where this wonder-weave comes from and how it gets imported in to  America.

Financial
He found out just how much money Black women are willing to  spend to be ‘beautiful’.  And considering  I’m a pretty low maintenance female, the prices shocked the hell out me to say  the least.

Rock also investigated the lack of ownership, or we could  say damn near nonexistence, of black hair product companies. 

Present Day
He took you in to the beauty salons and barber shops to  speak with the Black women who proudly wear their ‘Good Hair’, the stylists who  create it, and the Black men who date them. 

And then of course what could be better than to submerge the  audience in to the culmination and celebration of black hair --- BLACK HAIR SHOWS.  And to be specific, the Atlanta Bronner  Brothers Hair Show. 

Just me:  If you think I’m giving away too much of the  movie, I’m not.  Because what I can’t  give in this article is the gut-wrenching feeling experienced through the  comedic genius, snappy one-liners, and impressive wit that only Chris Rock can  deliver as he narrates the film.  And  that is what separates Chris Rock from the Michael Moore’s and other  documentarians.  Though this movie was  enlightening and well researched, Rock educated the audience without being  preachy and constantly entertaining you at the same time.

I’ve read some reviews about this film.  Some love it.   But others in the Black community feel like they were being made fun  of?????  I just didn’t see that.  Chris Rock chose to shed some light on the  thoughts, self esteem (or lack thereof), priorities, and choices that guide  many Black woman to buy these wonder-weaves and do what they do.  I thought Chris Rock was sincere in his quest  to find out about “what is good hair”.   So yes, he cracked some jokes while doing it.  Uuummm, that’s what comedians do.   The weave toting woman interviewed in the  beauty salons as well as the numerous stars --- Nia Long, Raven Simmone, Lauren  London --- did not appear to be ashamed to me?   I really don’t think he set out to make fun of Black women considering  he’s married to one and has two beautiful daughters for which he made the movie  for.

Other critics or the Black community said Rock didn’t go  into the fact that white women wear weaves as well.  We all know this to be true.  Many women of all different races wear  weaves.  But it’s obvious to me Rock made  this film for Black people which I truly appreciate.  And then, the movie is only two hours.  How much ground can he cover?  Maybe he’ll come out with Good Hair 2 and  Good Hair 3 and make some people happy.

So what did I take  away from this film?
Now between laughing hysterically  throughout the film in just about every other scene, there actually were some  astounding things stated in this film.  The most astounding statement came from none  other than the hair showman himself, Al Sharpton.  The movie talks a lot about hair weave and  the motives Black woman have behind sporting it around.  Al Sharpton talks about the hair weave as a  form of exploitation.  These women will  spend ungodly amounts of money to flaunt around this hair weave that others  (mainly Whites and Asians) make huge profits off of.  Sharpton makes the analogy of the wig/weave  being the object of exploitation that Black woman wear.  You are exploiting yourself for the profit of  others.  And as you wake up in the  morning and place the weave/wig on your head, you are placing that object of  exploitation on yourself willingly every day.

The other statement was from Chris Rock.  During the movie he mentions how many black  women do not want you to touch their hair when they have their luscious weave  in it.  And how this diminishes the  intimacy a Black man can share with his woman.   I think to some it might sounds far-fetched.  But it wasn’t to me.  No, I’m not saying hair weave are the  underlying reason for the destruction of black relationships.  But not being able to get close to your woman  and being on guard worrying about touching her hair, getting it wet, or moving  two hairs out of place could cause intimacy issues.   I mean  what guy wants a woman whose hair he can’t grab during sex?  Say “word”.

Do I think Black women should stop wearing weave?  Absolutely not.  There’s nothing wrong with wearing some weave  or perming your hair.  But I’m not sure  you need weave bad enough that you’re willing to put it on monthly installments  like it was some furniture or home appliance.   Weave is not a necessity.   It’s a luxury.  I just don’t think  it exemplifies a Black woman’s beauty as much as they think it does.   

Absolute funniest  scene in the movie
A beautician and one of the contestants in the Atlanta  Bronner Brothers Hair Show, Jason Griggers, goes to get botox for the first  time.  It ended up being a more painful experience  than what he anticipated.  And that’s all  I’m going to say.  So look for that scene  in the movie.