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The Watermelon Woman
1997 85m Not Rated
Drama
,
Comedy
,
Romance
7.1
92%
56%
69%
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A young black lesbian filmmaker probes into the life of The Watermelon Woman, a 1930s black actress who played 'mammy' archetypes.
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Directed By
Cheryl Dunye
Written By
Cheryl Dunye
Studio
Dancing Girl
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Cast of The Watermelon Woman
Cheryl Dunye
Cheryl
Guinevere Turner
Diana
Valarie Walker
Tamara
Lisa Marie Bronson
Fae 'The Watermelon Woman' Richards
Cheryl Clarke
June Walker
Irene Dunye
Self
Camille Paglia
Self
Toshi Reagon
Street Magician
Sarah Schulman
CLIT Archivist
Gail Lloyd
Diana's Black Date
Shelley Olivier
Annie Heath
Christopher Ridenhour
Bob
David Rakoff
Librarian
Brian Freeman
Lee Edwards
K. Brent Hill
J.J. Liberty
Evan Jackson
The Watermelon Woman Reviews
Slant Magazine
Clayton Dillard
It's a film of such multitudinous interests and storytelling pursuits that its unfolding replicates the ecstasy of newfound romance.
New York Daily News
Dave Kehr
Dunye's salvation is her sense of humor. She's good at creating light, bantering dialogue, and there are a couple of sharp, satirical scenes.
ReelViews
James Berardinelli
Dunye's film looks like it was produced with almost no money (which it was), but that's part of its essential charm... The Watermelon Woman is imbued with freshness, and that's it's best quality.
Miami Herald
Todd Anthony
It could have become a deadly earnest exercise. But Dunye combats didacticism with wit and irreverence (Camille Paglia even has a self-parodying cameo).
Chicago Tribune
Achy Obejas
The Watermelon Woman is quite smart, remarkably sophisticated filmmaking for a first-time director.
Arizona Republic
Bob Fenster
At its best, The Watermelon Woman is fresh and funny about love and friendship, with something serious to say about racism and changing racial conflicts through, the eras. But the movie doesn't have enough to be about.
Philadelphia Inquirer
Steven Rea
[It] has the poignancy of a history retrieved from obscurity, reflecting new light on the past and the present. And even if the history here isn't real, the emotions it triggers - and its sly musings about racial and sexual identity - most definitely are.
Boston Globe
Jay Carr
A sweet, sassy mockumentary.
Chicago Reader
Jonathan Rosenbaum
A lighthearted and for the most part lightweight pseudodocumentar.
Bitch Media
Alyx Vesey
In creating a rich, complex film about the processes of filmmaking and the interstices of identity, Dunye's The Watermelon Woman gets at the risk and reward involved in creating one's own history, which so often melds truth with fiction.
Village Voice
Serena Donadoni
Funny and smart, full of biting humor and astute observations about identity and history, Cheryl Dunye's audacious, joyous debut feature captures the process of falling hopelessly in love with the movies.
New York Times
Stephen Holden
[It] walks a fine line between serious intellectual inquiry and outright spoof. That it succeeds in being both stimulating and funny is a testament to the talent and open-heartedness of Ms. Dunye, who wrote and directed the movie and is its star.
San Francisco Chronicle
Ruthe Stein
For all the serious issues The Watermelon Woman tackles, the film never takes itself too seriously. Dunye has infused it with a lightness that seems to match her spirit.
Austin Chronicle
Marjorie Baumgarten
With this film, the director has created something she calls the "Dunyementary." I think the term frames it perfectly.
Los Angeles Times
Kevin Thomas
Dunye has much to express, and she does it with humor, energy, wit, passion and perception.
Minneapolis Star Tribune
Rosalind Bentley
It gives us something we don't see much of in film -- young black women claiming their space and sharing it with the rest of us.
Patheos
Eve Tushnet
Rambling, sweetly serious but also willing to do some self-deprecating satire, equal parts time capsule and still-relevant sheaf of questions.
Washington Blade
Brian T. Carney
Bold film that explores the intersection of race, class and sexuality...
Common Sense Media
Corrina Antrobus
Cheryl's gentle storytelling allows room for a scrumptious romantic thread that hits all the beats of a stylish romcom exploring interracial dating.
Chicago Reader
Andrea Thompson
They don't get much more groundbreaking than Cheryl Dunye's landmark of queer cinema.
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