Alma's Rainbow

This second feature from independent film maker Ayoka Chenzira, despite its style being a bit too redolent of a watered down "Do The Right Thing", sometimes amateurish acting, and a tendency to get silly at inappropriate times (like the aunt's graveside speech and the love making scene with Alma and her boyfriend), ultimately won me over. I found that I cared about the three main characters and their travails and I admired how writer/director Chenzira was able to make me care without resorting to undue sentimentality, to cite just the most prominent trap into which coming of age films can fall. I am glad Chenzira is still directing and I hope to see more of her work. Give it a B plus.

PS...I want to live in that Brooklyn brownstone!