Eve's Bayou

Set in the gloomily and moss-draped Louisiana backwater, “Eve's Bayou” is a classic cryptic soap opera that molds together the dysfunctions of lust and internecine family warfare with southern spirituality. The film, written and directed by Kasi Lemmons, is a nostalgic and exhilarating reverie that transcends the boundaries of the traditional Hollywood black film. The fascinating tales of memory and magic from the affluent Batiste family reflect the darkly and sensual landscape of the voodoo inhibited Louisiana. From its rich cinematography to its invigorating storyline, “Eve’s Bayou” is the perfect concoction of the turbulent struggle of overpowering sexuality and the premonitions within memory.
The film’s opening scene features a voice-over

prologue where Eve (Jurnee Smollett) recalls the summer in which she “killed her father when she was ten years old” (Eve’s Bayou). The provocative narration immediately piques the viewer’s curiosity and proceeds to capture the viewer’s attention and imagination for the next one hundred minutes where it ultimately achieves a new meaning in the film’s closing frames.
After Eve’s ominous confession, the viewer is introduced to a glittering party thrown by her parents, Louis (Samuel L. Jackson) and Roz (Lynn Whitfield). Unlike most black families, the prominent Batiste clan lives in a Georgian mansion surrounded by the swamplands of the Louisiana backwater. Louis, a popular and charismatic local physician, is a compulsive womanizer whose smiles spreads across his face like a seductive invitation. With his sharp suit and charming personality, Louis had the constant attention of many of the women at the party including his older daughter Cisely (Meagan Good) and Roz. Upset by her father’s decision to dance with Cicely, Eve slips into the carriage house and stumbles upon her father committing adultery with a guest. Distraught by what she saw, Eve unleashes layers of shock which ultimately gives away her presence. Unbothered by the event, Louis comforts Eve like a doctor who never
bristles at accusations and always feels guilty yet always does it again. Despite Louis’ reassurance of loyalty to his family, the revelatory memory forever shatters Eve’s innocence and triggers the tragic degeneration of the family.
Desperate for the lover of her father, Eve eventually realizes that her father spends his late night house calls philandering with many of the local women while her mother
is willfully blind to her father infidelities because she is afraid of transcending beyond the
traditional southern family.

These indiscretions continue to grow as Cisely, who is on the brink of adolescence, transforms into a rebellious epitome driven by sexual jealously and lust. The film’s dynamic character interactions is exacerbated by Louis's sister, Mozelle (Debbi Morgan), a psychic who is staying with the family after the death of her third husband. Coupled with the appearance of a voodoo priestess (Diahann Carroll) who predicts disaster for the family and Eve’s ill-planned wish for the father’s death, the film is a perfect combination of forceful sexuality and mystic spirituality.
From the powerful character inactions to the secrecy setting, Lemmons creates an exhilarating atmospshere of psychosexual tension and sexual jealously. Coupled with some of Hollywood’s brightest stars, it is not difficult to see why the film was the highest grossing independent film in

1997.
The undercurrent of sexuality and sexual jealousy is woven stealthily into the film. Not only does it create a complex emotion landscape, it also heightening the atmosphere of the Louisiana backwater in which the layers of hanging moss over the water seem to be riveting with heavy sexual secrecy. Lemmon’s ability to command the cinematic language of blunt yet gentle sexual jealously and lust is rare. By portraying Eve’s
ascension to womanhood as a journey of lost and discovery, Lemmon successfully
trends the line between drama and psychological thriller which leaves viewer boiling with anticipation for the next scene.
As Louis is ultimately punished for his womanizing ways, the film shows the
deleterious effects of perspective.

Cisely’s mendacious accusations of her father and the Eve’s ill-considered decisions had tremendous devastating ramifications that ultimately crippled their family. Through the tangled web of complex family relationships and character dynamics, Lemmon demonstrates how the slightest change in perception can alter an entire storyline. Furthermore, she introduces an unreliable narrator in Eve which blurs the viewer’s interpretation of the film. From the subplot of character inactions and the breakdown of the Batiste family, she highlights how minor differences can lead to a vastly different interpretation which heightens the viewer’s own experience of the

film.
Not only does Lemmon strike the delicate balance between magic and mundane, she presents piteous humor to help dilute the occasion melodrama and dark voodoo scenes of the film. In some of the scenes with Mozelle, Lemmon presents some witty humor and dialogue which enlightens the darkly aspects of the film while providing viewers with some light outlets for laughter.
“Eve’s Bayou” is a refreshing film that does not attempt to replicate and
perpetuate the racial stereotype of the traditional black film. Instead, Lemmon embraces the unfamiliar plot of a wealthy and affluent black family in the South. Through her usage of powerful character interactions and themes, she defines the stereotypical standards and unleashes an exciting and refreshing storyline.
“Eve's Bayou” is a powerful film that examines the evolving dynamics of family relationships. Not only does Lemmon’s rare command of cinematic technology create the
unique characters who appear as both despicable and innocent, her ability to personifies the landscape of the Louisiana backwater is intriguing and exhilarating. Although the film would have benefitted from shortening many of the screens, it still manages to capture the viewer’s attention and curiosity for the duration of the film. It is truly a movie like no other, and deserves an audience.