I realize Black folks are excited about this new film. As a Black woman born and reared in Mississippi, the birth place of white racism and subsequently the blues, I get it!
I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the rare image of black people celebrating life, in this case through our rich music. But the film's uniqueness was robbed by the stereotypical casting of a white woman as the love interest of the leading protagonist. Some black people have argued that she represents evil, but her character demonstrated no greater evil or sin than the married black woman who had sex with one of the leading actors, and who also was turned to a vampire.
In contrast, the film provided a wonderful, rare opportunity to see romance between a leading black male protagonist and an authentic black woman, but their short live romance and unnecessary deaths were very disheartening and disappointing particularly given that the interracial relationship between the leading black male and white woman continued indefinitely.
I am not sure of Cooglar's intent for these two distinct relationships, but as a black man, married to a black woman, who presents himself as being socially conscious, I would have expected him to know and do better, hence, allow the black couple, who had suffered the loss of their newborn, to have a second chance at life and happiness; instead, for them he chose death and some BS pie in the sky justification, "they waiting for me and you too," suggesting once again that Black people can have happiness and peace only in the afterlife. In this regards, the film was very disappointing and counterproductive.
Finally, I think it would have been cool for the leading Black woman to tap into the power of rootwork as an effective form of resistance against vampirism as it was against slavery.