Film Review: Hulu’s Bad Hair Asks What Is “Good” Hair?
Out October 23 on Hulu, Bad Hair is a deliciously refreshing mix to the horror genre because it is both genuinely creepy and campy. While, at times, it does not know how to balance both sides of its quarter, there is no denying that its magic relies on a secret ingredient many horror films ignore but Dateline, somehow, captures: making what is normal terrifying. So many women do their hair and, undeniably, feel like they could be on the cover of Vogue walking out of a salon, but Bad Hair is about how “good looks” can be deceiving, especially when they have a dark history behind them.
From the onset, Bad Hair comments on the unfortunate, detrimental pressure black women have to mold to “white beauty standards” like, having “good hair.” For my fellow “curlies,” especially women of color, we have all heard the phrase “making it manageable” in association with our hair. The sad part is that our treatment DOES differ between when we leave our hair natural versus when we turn into a make-shift chemical plant, iron it, and add foreign hair pieces all to look like a walking Tresemme commercial. Directed and created by Justin Simien, he does a wittily observant job at showing how life really got better for Elle Lorraine’s Anna; if only her weave was not ripped from an ancient evil embedded in America’s slave history.
Bad Hair – Trailer (Official) * A Hulu Original
While Anna takes on the world with confidence, her hair grows to take its blood. It is in these moments where the film gives viewers some gory, disgusting, and, ultimately, great scares. Who would have thought hair could be so frightening? Well, for Justin Simien it is, but not because it comes to life and kills people as much as, if its not deemed beautiful, it can kill dreams and livelihoods. With a body count rising, Anna struggles between submitting to her weave’s power so as to get material rewards or actually trying to figure out how to get rid of it and put that piece to rest. Yet, this dilemma 100% reflects a sad issue amongst people of color, in general, which is the struggle/ feeling that, in order to rise, you either have to sell out or get sold.
Lorraine is a wonderful lead because she makes Anna smart, sweet, and secretly powerful, but so rejected that she grows timid and tired. As someone with her own pile of rejections, I get the feeling, especially because you know some missed chances were because of your race, ethnicity, or how your “appearance” blocked your spirit’s chance to thrive in this world. Some of the most telling and impactful scenes are the conversations Anna has with Vanessa Williams’ Zora; her boss whom does NOT hold back telling Anna that she does not “look the part” for the power she seeks, and pressures her to “soften” and “silk” her style and hair. Anna does so because it is not easy to keep pushing yourself to push others to respect you, and see how it fails to get desired results.
The ‘Bad Hair’ Cast Talks Making a Horror Movie About a Killer Weave
Tell someone to be kind to you because you are a human being, and they won’t, but get a great weave, and, suddenly, people are holding doors for you and offering Janet Jackson tickets. Anna’s story captures how materialism can be an endearing seducer because you DO need money and opportunity to live, but is it worth the death and degradation of others? We may say, “No!” outright, but just look at our politics and you can see even those that say no publicly say, “Yes!” personally. Ultimately, power corrupts, and Bad Hair is a surprising testament to how our very desire for it can make us lose ourselves, particularly when power has always been defined either without or against us. Add on the hilarious Jay Pharaoh, Lena Waithe, Laverne Cox, Kelly Rowland, and R&B King Usher, and the film offers enough laughs and horror splash to make you ponder what is truly terrifying: hair/ power or how we define its “goodness?”
