Hacker Cinema
Barbershop
2002 · Film · 102 min
Part of Barbershop Collection
Directed by Tim Story
A day in the life of a barbershop on the south side of Chicago. Calvin, who inherited the struggling business from his deceased father, views the shop as nothing but a burden and waste of his time. After selling the shop to a local loan shark, Calvin slowly begins to see his father's vision and legacy and struggles with the notion that he just sold it out.
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5 comments on Hacker News
What's silly is your characterization of these barber shops.
We're talking about black American males who are local to their barbers and they use the time to talk about the issues that affect them.
There are literally movies (Coming to America, the Barbershop) and TV shows (The Shop: Uninterrupted) which directly feature these concepts. So if they're as unimportant and silly as you suggest, then why are they so prominent?
Could it possibly be because these people find the experience important in a way that you've missed?
I've never been prejudiced, but I learned race existed in the 8th grade when a black kid called me racist for having not seen the movie Barbershop.
Barber shops are traditionally, and presently, social gathering spots. Go to proper barber shops, not hair cutting chains, and you'll see people just sitting around hanging out talking.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barber
>Barbershops are also places of social interaction and public discourse. In some instances, barbershops are also public forums. They are the locations of open debates, voicing public concerns, and engaging citizens in discussions about contemporary issues.
https://nmaahc.si.edu/blog/community-roles-barber-shop-and-beauty-salon
>Since the turn of the 19th century, beauty salons and barber shops have served as special places among African Americans. They have been places not only to get hair care services but locations where black people could be vulnerable and talk about issues of importance in the community. There were spaces where customers played games such as chess, cards, and dominoes, while having conversations about local gossip, politics, and community affairs.
And this isn't just an African American thing, it's a white thing, it's a Hispanic thing, it's an everyone thing.
Here's an article about how governments and non-profits are using salons and the like to help educate people about things, like getting help for domestic violence
https://www.governing.com/topics/mgmt/gov-barbershops-hair-salons-illinois.html
Recently in the medical drama New Amsterdam one of the main characters tried to set up a clinic in a low-income neighborhood barber shop (and it was likely taken directly from this real news https://www.nbcnews.com/health/heart-health/cutting-hair-blood-pressure-how-black-barbershops-can-save-lives-n855771 ).
Why do you think there is a line of films called Barbershop?
Or that on shows and movies of yesteryear, like The Andy Griffith Show, barbershops were hubs of the community where the men went (and still do) go to socialize?
https://www.thefader.com/2017/10/23/black-barbershops-photo-essay-interview
https://www.wnyc.org/story/fear-black-barbershop/
https://www.artofmanliness.com/articles/rediscovering-the-barbershop/
https://www.forbes.com/sites/bisnow/2017/07/06/barbershops-are-back-and-bucking-retail-trends/
https://www.ogleschool.edu/blog/resurgence-of-the-great-american-barbershop/
https://business.mindbody.io/education/blog/barber-shops-trend-will-not-fade-away
https://nearsay.com/c/456502/306271/why-barbershops-have-seen-a-resurgence-in-popularity
https://scandinaviantraveler.com/en/lifestyle/retro-barbershops-are-making-a-trendy-comeback
Ray, Ali, Color Purple, Glory, Django, Cotton Club, Boyz in the Hood, Friday, Malcolm X, Bad Boys, Barbershop, and of course, New Jack City.
Each of these movies did great and reached a wide demographic. As did Black Panther. The only difference is that Black Panther's marketing propogated this ridiculous myth that it was the first black superhero movie. (Sorry, Wesley Snipes, Will Smith, and Halle Berre... you're down the memory hole.) Or, even more absurd, that it is the first all-black cast that has done well at the box office.
Just shows how powerful marketing is.
More power to them... I've lived through several iterations of "'brand-new' microfiber technology that make cleaning up spills a snap!" I suppose I can live through endless repetitions of "the very first movie with a real-live black person in it!" Whatever....
Y'all watch Barbershop the movie? It's great.