MovieChat Forums > Mallrats (1995) Discussion > no black people?

no black people?

posted 12 years ago by tommix42
10 replies | jump to latest

I am so sorry to do this, I really hate it when people make threads like this, and spoil the fun of the movie for me.

I #$%&$%^&!?#$?#! love Mallrats, and I worked in a similar setting back in the 90's... it wasn't a shopping mall, technically, but it was pretty close. Hey, I just remembered, I actually did work in a shopping mall for a brief period in the 90's, at another time than the time I was just thinking of... So anyway, I like this movie a lot, and I don't think race should particularly matter when thinking about it.

But, I'm just saying, I never even thought of this before, but are there any black people in this movie? I know, it's supposed to be a pretty typical mall, in suburban, mostly white, America, in the 90's.

Again, I LOVE THIS MOVIE, and I seriously don't mean this as a criticism. It's just supposed to be a movie about a couple of guys in their early 20s, or possibly 19 years old at the youngest, having girlfriend troubles. Who cares what color they are. But, I just thought, if they made this movie today, they would probably make a few of the characters black, just for the sake of diversity. Interesting.

Increase the voltage.
But what if he's innocent?
No one is innocent. Proceed.

[–] madjew_2000 12 years ago

there is one he plays a stage hand.

When you got to shoot,shoot. Don't talk.-Tuco

[–] zerlinde6 11 years ago

Down in South Jersey by the shore there is (or was, at that time) a larger white population as opposed to up in North Jersey, where I live. Makes sense since most jobs are up here and across the river/bay in NYC.
Funny thing is that people who live in the SouthEastern towns by or on the ocean rely on a lot of North Jersey people from North Jersey for tourism money to keep businesses afloat, yet they hold prejudice against us and call us "Bennies" (stands for $benjamins$) no matter what race one is because they're resent that there's more $ to be made up here. Hypocritical, considering we bring in a good amount of revenue for them during the summer, which is the only time of year the money really flows in.
Now, after Hurricane Sandy, I don't hear so much about that stuff anymore because they're forced to appreciate us.

[–] brightmidnight71 10 years ago

I worked many a summer down the shore and the only people who get called bennies are the jackasses from upstate and NY who get puking drunk, start fights, break property, and drive like maniacs. The place is made for tourists. The ones that have a good time and spend some dough are the backbone of the economy there, like any other seasonal town. It's the *beep* that come along that year-rounders don't like.

[–] protocolglide 11 years ago

It was because the film was shot at a mall in Minnesota. And if you remember Chris Rock's skit, it goes "There ain't no black people in Minnesota, except for Prince and Kirby Puckett".

[–] demonlord6696 10 years ago

Minnesota, eh?

[–] cyber_omega-919-65766 10 years ago

There's a few in the audience to the dating show.

[–] WeAintFoundShin 10 years ago

There were more just out of frame, but they were there.

Where were the Asians and Guatemalans though?!

[–] eric20other2002 10 years ago

Kevin Smith has discussed this before that in the area he lived in it was mostly white and it was unusual for a black person to be in a mall in Central New Jersey and these films are usually based around KS own personal experience.
Besides no one ever ask why there is hardly any white people in today's black comedies, so don't know why it's only brought up when it's all white.

[–] krypton_son 10 years ago

Why would you want any in it?

[–] Comatose_Conscience 9 years ago

I guess Kevin preferred working with white people at that moment in time.

Nothing particularly wrong with that.