On The Come up Movie : Sanaa Lathan’s debut in this love Letter story .

Society is a tricky force to navigate, and women in particular can feel caught between the expectations they have of themselves and society’s mold. But Bri has one thing on her side — her steely inner strength fueled by an unrelenting determination. She has big dreams and she won’t let anything stop her from achieving them—even if it means turning to crime or signing up for sex work. ” . On the Come Up” is a novel about Bri’s journey from being 16 years old, who hasn’t ever been told that she could be more than what society expects of her, to a woman who finally gets it.

What is the plot of the story ?

Bri is a 16 year old child of a single mom. Bri has no father figure, and her mother isn’t there for most of her life. She’s in school and wants to be a rapper, but society, her peers and other people around her are all telling her she can’t be one, or she’s not good enough. The purpose of this novel is to show that we need more representation in the media with famous rappers who are women of color. I wanted to give Bri agency as well because in most coming-of-age novels, women usually have no agency when it comes to their sexuality. I wanted to give women agency over themselves.

Who is in the cast ? What role did each character portray ?

The cast include Da Vine Joy Randolph , Mikes Epps , Layla , Bri Cox-Havens, Lil’ Bri Cox-Havens , and Blake Hernandez. Each character portrayed a role in the novel. Da Vine, Joy , Randolph, and Mikes all helped Bri get to where she needed to be in life. Her mother , Bri’s mom is someone who didn’t want her daughter to go down a particular path but I also gave her agency throughout the novel which is why Bri ends up with Joy after she has an argument with her mom about attending an art class. Layla was someone Bri looked up to for the longest, until bri realized that Layla was using her for fame and whenever bri wanted something from Layla she would have to do something sexual for Layla .

What are the difficulties they face ?

The difficulties they face are mainly the issues facing women of color in high school. Society is heavily biased against women of color and it’s very hard to break through it, especially when Bri has a single mom. Bri didn’t have a father because she was born to crack cocaine-addicted parents and people are always taking advantage of her because of her situation.

What are the themes ?

The themes of this story are mainly on feminism and dystopia. I chose feminism because of how heavily women are underrepresented in the media and it’s very hard to break through it.  They  want to show people that women can be anything they want to be, no matter what society thinks. I also chose dystopia because of how heavily our futures could go if we don’t focus on fixing the problems we have now.

Who is the antagonist ? What are its motives ?

The antagonist to this story are mainly the biases we have and our judgments of each other. Society is always trying to bring someone down and it’s very hard to break through when you’re trying to get a good job, have money or find a good partner. Society tries to put people into boxes and make us conform but ultimately we have the choice on whether or not we want to conform. The scenes that are epic would be the ones in which Bri is rapping and being herself. The rap scene is a big one because it’s showing people that it doesn’t matter if you’re not a woman of color , or if you’re trying to become a famous rapper, you can do it if you work hard enough !

Who is the most loved character ?

The one character the readers love is Bri. She’s a teenager who has big dreams and she’s trying to make them come true . When it comes to the type of person that she is, it’s someone who knows what they want in life and they’re not afraid to get it. She’s a very strong-willed character who goes out there and gets what she wants. The one scene that shows all of this would be when Bri gets arrested for prostitution. This is the scene where viewers start to see the real Bri because of how forceful she becomes when she gets angry.

Would you recommend watching this ?

Yes, I would recommend this because it’s a very good coming-of-age story and since it’s about a female rap s and becoming famous, that would be awesome! Thanks for reading !