Ritual (2000)

Gotham Entertainment and the Raslan Company of America present Ritual, a powerful psychological drama written and directed by Stanley Bennett Clay, based on his award-winning stage play. "RITUAL" stars Clarence Williams III (The General’s Daughter), Denise Nicholas (CBS-TV In The Heat of the Night), Angelle Brooks (The VIPs), and Shawn Michael Howard (Above the Rim). Leon Becker (Clarence Williams III) is a successful and wealthy Malibu attorney and the patriarch of a seemingly perfect and harmonious family. Leon sees his brood not only as the pinnacle of personal achievement, but also as an example to all that the great American Dream is attainable, even if you are Black. But underneath the surface, the Beckers are a family in crisis. Leon is completely oblivious to the trials and tribulations that exist in his home and is equally detached from his ethnic soul. Wife and mother Sylvia (Nicholas) is on the verge of alcoholism and is threatened by her daughter Teresa (Brooks), a cunning "Electra" who seems to want to replace her in the house and, perhaps, the bedroom. And Becker’s brooding son Mason (Howard) drops out of his Ivy League school and returns home to confront his family’s problems. Yet, all these trials-by fire are the challenges along the path to survival for this American family.

Christ-like gay son tries to save family

A father-daughter and mother-son dynamic is played from several angles with the twist that the son, Mason, is gay. The son's initially simple quest to heal family tensions leads to moments of self discovery for all of the characters and eventually to various extreme behaviors on Mason's part, possibly to manipulate the desired outcomes, or possibly as a reaction to what he is drawn into. The Mason character is quiet and steadfast, leading to a sense of mystery about just how much he really knows. Other reviewers have mentioned one (spoiler) shocking scene. That scene is instrumental to the plot, to understanding the game that Mason is playing, and the explicit nature of it is necessary to make the point of what is unfolding. If you don't understand that scene, I think you are missing an important point.

My initial impression was that Mason was a study in the syndrome of the gay son trying to be too perfect, but the ending is hauntingly ambiguous on this point. Having spoken with the author today (very briefly), he was more interested in the religious metaphor aspect of it, and thought of the gayness as less critical to the theme.

This was a surprisingly good film, exploring race, shattered dreams, workaholics, and using sexual orientation to add tension to the relations. It was not a standard fare kiss-and-be-happy film. If I had to criticize it on any front, I'd say the characters, while well acted, were too extreme in their various roles to be fully believable. August 19, 2007

The Ritual

This a "family-type" movie which has some not so unusual undertones, a daughter who has great desires to replace her mother in the eyes of her father, a mother who understands what is going on but refuses to acknowledge it by drinking herself into a stupor and a father who is strong-willed, determined to mold his son in his image, a son who refuses. The beauty in it is when the whole situation boils over and the mother takes charge. July 26, 2007

Good movie

I saw this movie last weekend. It was well acted and quite moving. It shows that success and fulfillment are not always synonymous, and affluence does not insulate you from pain. I recommend it. December 5, 2006

I took a second look...

I watched this moving while finishing my book and couldn't really catch the meaning behind it. I watch a second time with no distractions and I was very impressed by this movie. I have to say that I wasn't really a fan of the brother and sister doing the nasty, but overall, it was a good movie. I also agree with a previous viewer when they stated that that sibling incest could have been left out and the movie would have still remained a great movie. May 29, 2006

Strange, but true.

This is a interesting film. Denise Nicholas has come a long way since the TV show Room 222. Since, I had know idea what to expect from the screenplay, I watched with an open heart and mind. When a militant becomes part of the system somehow there is now focus on the real possibilities of what could be his life. Therefore one by one each member of the family suffers their own private pain. Only for the despair to be shared with another member of the family unit. Fantasy? Who knows what goes on behind the gates of an affluent community. See the movie and form your own opinion. I think Marvin Gaye said it best, "What's Goin' On?" August 17, 2005

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