Passing (film)

Passing is a 2021 American historical drama film written and directed by Rebecca Hall in her feature directorial debut. It is adapted from the 1929 novel of the same name by Nella Larsen. Set in 1920s New York City, the film follows the intertwined life of a black woman (Tessa Thompson) and her white-passing childhood friend (Ruth Negga). Appearing in supporting roles are André Holland, Bill Camp, Gbenga Akinnagbe, Antoinette Crowe-Legacy, and Alexander Skarsgård. It was filmed in black-and-white.

Passing had its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, on January 30, 2021, and began a limited theatrical release on October 27, 2021, prior to streaming on Netflix on November 10.

The film received acclaim from critics, who praised Hall's screenplay and direction, and the performances of Thompson and Negga. The film was named one of the top ten films of 2021 by the African American Film Critics Association. For her performance, Negga was nominated for the Golden Globe Award, the BAFTA and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Plot
In 1920s New York City, Irene Redfield, a light-skinned black woman living in Harlem, meets a childhood friend, Clare Bellew, by chance at a hotel dining room. Irene is married to a Black doctor. She learns that Clare has been "passing" as white and has married a wealthy white man from Chicago.

Clare invites Irene to her hotel room, so they can talk more openly. Clare explains that after her father died, she was raised by her two white aunts. She married her husband, John, when she was very young. They are interrupted by John, who openly despises and degrades Black people, unaware of his wife's or Irene's racial background. Irene leaves the hotel, angry with Clare, and refuses to respond, when Clare writes to her. But, after Clare unexpectedly shows up at Irene's home and apologizes for the encounter, they rekindle their friendship.

Clare wants to associate with Black people, again, and invites herself to a dance party that Irene is organizing. Most of the guests at the party find Clare charming, including Irene's husband, Brian. That evening, Irene reveals Clare's secret to her friend, novel writer Hugh Wentworth, who seems less impressed with Clare than the others.

As time passes, Clare becomes involved in all aspects of Irene's life, often joining Irene and Brian to their outings. At first, Irene seems happy to have Clare around, but soon, she becomes disillusioned with her and starts to resent her presence. Brian, also dissatisfied, attempts to teach his and Irene's children about some of the harshness of racism in America, as Irene refuses to move anywhere else. Irene believes that the children are too young to learn about the worst events, and she and Brian argue about it, further straining their marriage. Brian invites Clare to a tea party from which Irene has purposely excluded her.

When out shopping with her friend, Felise, who is obviously Black, Irene encounters John. She hurries away, as he begins to realize the truth about his wife's racial background. Irene tries to warn Clare but decides against it, when she is unable to reach her by phone.

As Brian, Irene, and Clare are on their way to Felise's Christmas party on the top floor of a six-story building, Irene asks Clare what she would do if John ever learned the truth. Clare replies that she would move back to Harlem to be with Irene, who is troubled by this. During the party, Irene remains silent, avoiding the other guests. She opens a large vertical window to smoke.

Suddenly, John angrily forces himself into the apartment, demanding to see Clare. She remains calm and moves next to Irene, by the window. John accuses her of being a "dirty liar" and lunges towards her. Clare falls backward, out the window, but it is not clear whether John or Irene pushed her or if she deliberately jumped.

In horror, the other guests rush outside, not knowing whether Clare is dead. Irene slowly goes downstairs, where the police are questioning guests. Brian says that he believes John pushed Clare, but, when asked, Irene says that she believes the fall was an accident. The film ends with the police declaring death by misadventure, Irene sobbing in Brian's arms, and Clare's body being carried away by medics.

Cast

 * Tessa Thompson as Irene "Reenie" Redfield
 * Ruth Negga as Clare Bellew
 * André Holland as Brian Redfield
 * Bill Camp as Hugh Wentworth
 * Alexander Skarsgård as John Bellew
 * Gbenga Akinnagbe as Dave Freedland
 * Antoinette Crowe-Legacy as Felise
 * Ashley Ware Jenkins as Zu

Production
It was announced in August 2018 that Rebecca Hall would be making her directorial debut on the adaptation of the Nella Larsen novel, with Tessa Thompson and Ruth Negga set to star in the lead roles.

Hall had begun writing the screenplay a decade earlier, upon reflecting on her own family's history. Her American mother, an opera singer, was of mixed race and passed as white, and her father was a white British film and theatre director.

When Hall presented Negga with a screenplay, the actress decided to collaborate to get the film made. She was surprised that Larsen's novel was not better known, as she had been "completely astounded,” when reading it. Thompson said that the film would be shot in black and white, to represent the texture of the period.

André Holland was cast in October 2019. In November 2019, Alexander Skarsgård joined the cast.

With less than a month to go before filming and production set to begin, Hall was still $500,000 short on her desired $10 million budget. She applied for two grants, to cover the difference. Filming began in November 2019, in New York City.

The film is in black and white. Benjamin Lee of The Guardian praised the use of a 4:3 aspect ratio, as in this film, it was "both fitting and practical, given a smaller budget". Into the third week of filming, the Hugh Wentworth role, originally intended for Benedict Cumberbatch, remained uncast. Budgetary realities and the tight filming timeline meant the production would need an actor who lived in New York. On November 21, Bill Camp signed on, and filming wrapped in December after a 23-day shoot.

Release
Passing had its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival on January 30, 2021. Shortly after, Netflix acquired distribution rights to the film for around $15 million. It also screened at the New York Film Festival on October 3, 2021. The film had a limited theatrical release on October 27, 2021, prior to streaming on Netflix on November 10.

According to Samba TV, the film was watched in 653,000 households over its first three days of release.

Critical reception
Kevin Maher of The Times gave the film 4 out of 5 stars, calling it, "a mesmerizing, deeply disquieting experience." Jessica Kiang, writing for Variety, said that the film is "unerring, deceptively delicate, quiet and immaculate, like that final fall of snow."

In his review for The Guardian, Peter Bradshaw praised Hall's direction, calling the film, "a very stylish piece of work from Hall." Benjamin Lee of The Guardian, gave the film a negative review of 2 out of 5 stars, arguing that it had "disappointing lack of verve" and was "inert".

The performances of Negga and Thompson, in particular, received praise. In a very positive review for the Chicago Tribune, Michael Phillips gave the film a perfect score of four out of four stars and wrote of their performances: "What Thompson and Negga accomplish on screen, in this extraordinarily detailed portrait, becomes a master class in incremental revelations." David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter lauded Thompson for her "unshowy, beautifully internalized performance,” and Simran Hans called Negga "magnetic" in her review for The Guardian. In Time Magazine's annual list, Stephanie Zacharek ranked Negga's performance among the ten best of 2021.