Michael Taylor

This movie is far from racist. Those of you who are claiming it is an example of "black-face" don't know what the fudge you are talking about. Black-face is when a white actor takes a black part instead of that part going to a black actor. In the movie Soul Man the protagonist is white, so a white actor taking the role is NOT black-face. The protagonist is a white student who pretends to be black in order to receive an unclaimed scholarship intended for a black student. SPOILERS from here on... In the course of his deception he meets another black student who works in the student dining hall to pay for her own tuition and he learns that the scholarship he took would have ultimately gone to her since it wasn't claimed in the area intended. After several racially charged incidents (including getting beaten up by a racist baseball team in jail) he finally fesses up to his crime. The movie is not very realistic when it comes to the penalties of such a felony, but it was entertaining. I probably would have given it 4.5 to 5 stars if our hero had actually faced any real consequences... as it is, he wasn't even expelled. I think this movie was inspired by the life story of Elizabeth Warren who claimed American Native status for scholarships and jobs.