American Fiction (2023) on Netflix
Thelonious 'Monk' Ellison is a Black novelist whose books earn praise but few sales. His publisher calls his work not Black enough, so he writes a fake memoir under a pen name.
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- Netflix4.2/5
- IMDb7.5/10157,154 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes94%
Trailer
Plot summary
In Los Angeles, Thelonious 'Monk' Ellison teaches at a college and writes novels that critics admire and buyers ignore. His publisher turns down his newest book, saying it is not Black enough, and his superiors, after quarrels with students over race, put him on temporary leave and suggest he attend a literary seminar in Boston, the city where he grew up. There a packed room turns out for Sintara Golden and her bestselling We's Lives in Da Ghetto, which panders to Black stereotypes. Monk visits his mother Agnes, whose memory is failing, and his sister Lisa, and he meets Coraline, a lawyer who lives across from Agnes's beach house. Resenting Sintara's success and facing the cost of his mother's care, he writes My Pafology, a fake memoir mocking what the literary world expects from Black writers.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about American Fiction (2023)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Cord Jefferson, making his feature directorial debut, said he was such a fan of Jeffrey Wright's that he was nervous about giving him feedback, so producer Nikos Karamigios told him on the first day of shooting to be more assertive as a director.
- American Fiction was shot in only twenty-six days, with most scenes completed in just three or four takes.
- American Fiction is the first film from Orion Pictures to be distributed through Amazon MGM Studios Distribution after Amazon bought MGM, and the 2021 MGM logo was added to the beginning of the film.
