Ethnicity

Black loads splatter in Ethnicity, a semi-mournful paean to the perils of modern city living. Director Brad Armstrong does an admirable job of capturing the complexities of urban screwing. With an impressive cinematic scope, Ethnicity is what John Singleton might have produced if he took a wrong turn into Porn Valley after making Boyz n the Hood. Prince Yahshua plays Marcus, an athlete on the skids whose mental state is a few shades darker than Lamar Odom’s when he wandered coma-bound into a Nevada brothel. A well-acted hip-hopera on the level of Empire unfolds, chronicling the enticements and perils of thug life, with an inevitably tragic conclusion. But enough about plot. How’s the twat? Not bad, as it turns out. Doe-eyed, chocolate-skinned enchantress Osa Lovely is a particular delight to watch as she’s put through her sexual paces. Despite the erotic heat, Ethnicity, with all of its focus on being conscious, ends up half-awake. Naming Marcus’s football team the Cali Silverbacks seems like a needlessly cheap, racist joke, and lines like “The ways to a bitch’s heart is always through some nice new ice” don’t help much either. Armstrong seems to be splitting the difference between sneering plantation owner and concerned social worker here, and as a result there are more than a few shades of gray involved. Ethnicity will likely jolt your conscience along with your libido.