Stars: Tika Sumpter, Parker Sawyers, Taylar Fondren
Storyline
Chronicles the summer 1989 afternoon when the future President of the United States of America, Barack Obama, wooed his future First Lady on an epic first date across Chicago's South Side.
Cast: Tika Sumpter -
Michelle Robinson
Parker Sawyers -
Barack Obama
Taylar Fondren -
Janice
(as TayLar)
Preston Tate Jr. -
Kyle
Angel Knight -
Baskin Robbins Girl
Tony E. Brown -
Community Church Meeting Attendee
Vanessa Bell Calloway -
Marian Robinson
Deborah Geffner -
Toot
Donn C. Harper -
Curtis
Jerod Haynes -
Tommy
Debbie Holstein -
Production Coordinator
Gabrielle Lott-Rogers -
Rafiqa
Tom McElroy -
Avery Goodman
Fred Nance Jr. -
Nance Residence
(as Fred Nance)
Michelle Obama -
Michelle Obama
(archive footage)
Country: USA
Language: English
Release Date: 3 Jan 2016
Filming Locations: Chicago, Illinois, USA
Box Office Details
Budget: $1,500,000
(estimated)
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Did You Know?
Trivia:
The movie was shot in 15 days. See more »
User Review
Author:
Rating: 9/10
Writer/director Richard Tanne's "Southside With You" is a sweet,
wonderful, and romantic first date film. Yes the characters are iconic,
but they're written in such a way that their life and struggle resonate
with any two people just trying to get to know each other. Great
performances by its two leads, Parker Sawyers and Tika Sumpter,
"Southside With You" is a rare gem.
The story loosely recounts how Barack and Michelle Robinson first met
in the summer of 1989. Barack Obama (Parker Sawyers) was just a young
law firm associate and Michelle Robinson (Tika Sumpter) is a tough
lawyer who's supposed to mentor him. But Barack has an agenda, he's
trying to woo Michelle who herself is not interested in the prospect of
dating, she has ambition career. But the long day of them hanging out
together from the art institute to watching a movie ultimately leads to
their first kiss.
One of the many things I love about this film is that it feels so
disarming, so relaxed, your guards are down because you don't have to
expect some big spectacle to show up from around the corner. It's just
two people walking and talking, like Richard Linklater's "Before
Sunrise," and so you're invested in the characters, you get to know
them just as they themselves get to know each other. There's some big
themes tackled in "Soutside With You" like Michelle Robinson feeling
angry because the fact that she's a woman and she's black may give her
obstacles in her career, and Barack is angry at her biological father
having left him and his mom, so there are deeply rooted personal issues
that audiences can relate to, which makes these iconic characters all
the more human, and writer/director Richard Tanne approaches in a
calmed, subtle yet firm and profound manner. And part of its success is
also because actors Tika Sumpter and Parker Sawyers are more focused on
creating the characters written on the pages of the script as opposed
to mimicking, so the result that you get is the embodiment of these
character's essence, not impersonation, not caricature. And I love how
it doesn't fall into the generics of Hollywood rom-com where there's
usually lots of gags and other attempts that try too hard to make you
laugh. "Southside With You" is just a sweet little film that helps you
breathe, you watch it and your stress level goes down. Despite your
political views or what you may think of President Obama's
administration, when you watch "Southside With You," I guarantee you'll
fall in love with it right away.
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