Would someone hide in plain sight to live a better life? The answers are not so easy, especially when it comes to how society perceives status and race. Rebecca Hall’s directorial debut “Passing,” acclaimed upon its premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, seeks to create a conversation about racism’s impact on personal and public identity. The story of two friends trying to succeed in a world that doesn’t value their presence is an adaptation of Nella Larsen’s novel (read our review here).
The project features two top actresses in roles sure to draw awards season attention. Tessa Thompson’s appeal has only grown by balancing big-budget titles with appearances in critically acclaimed films. Ruth Negga makes up the other half of the featured duo. Negga herself built an extensive resume, recently starring on the series “Preacher.” The casting of two popular and respected leads proves to be an added inspiration for the first-time director. Hall is obviously better known as an actress, known for “The Prestige,” “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” and more.
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The fIlm’s official synopsis:
Adapted from the celebrated 1929 novel of the same name by Nella Larsen, PASSING tells the story of two Black women, Irene Redfield (Tessa Thompson) and Clare Kendry (Academy Award nominee Ruth Negga), who can “pass” as white but choose to live on opposite sides of the color line during the height of the Harlem Renaissance in late 1920s New York. After a chance encounter reunites the former childhood friends one summer afternoon, Irene reluctantly allows Clare into her home, where she ingratiates herself to Irene’s husband (André Holland) and family, and soon her larger social circle as well. As their lives become more deeply intertwined, Irene finds her once-steady existence upended by Clare, and PASSING becomes a riveting examination of obsession, repression and the lies people tell themselves and others to protect their carefully constructed realities.
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Acclaimed upon its premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, PASSING marks the directorial debut of Rebecca Hall, who also adapted the screenplay. The film intimately uses the notion of “passing” to explore not just racial identity but gender and the responsibilities of motherhood, sexuality and the performance of femininity. PASSING also stars Bill Camp, Gbenga Akinnagbe, Antoinette Crowe-Legacy, and Alexander Skarsgard; and is produced by Nina Yang Bongiovi (p.g.a.), Forest Whitaker (p.g.a.), Margot Hand (p.g.a.), Rebecca Hall (p.g.a.).
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“Passing” premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year and was met with rave reviews. André Holland, Alexander Skarsgård, and Bill Camp also star. “Passing” opens in select theaters on October 27, and premieres on Netflix November 10. Get your first look at the film below.