In My Town Blogathon - San Francisco

My Hometown Blogathon

Wide Screen World had a great idea for a Blogathon, focus on a film made in your hometown. Great idea!

I grew up in one of the most famous cities in the world, San Francisco. I now live in a nearby suburb, but nothing quite compares to roaming the city and discovering new things.

Of course I can choose from a vast array of films that are based in my beautiful City by the Bay, but it’s specifically the “roaming the city” aspect that made me choose my selection, Medicine for Melancholy.

This 2008 indie film stars Wyatt Cenac (Micah) and Tracey Heggins (Jo) as African-American twenty something’s wondering how to react to each other the morning after their one night stand. It’s a quiet little film that probably isn’t for everyone; it’s very talky and doesn’t have traditional rom-com qualities. It’s not a love story in the making. It’s more about class and race and how two people in the same city can lead completely different lives. I appreciated what it was trying to say about relationships and especially about the gentrification of my beloved city.

Micah lives in a crappy one room apartment in the Tenderloin, not a good neighborhood! How believably refreshing though, because none of us can afford to live the Painted Ladies Victorian homes they always show when we get a view of San Francisco. Sorry, rents are high in the city and none of us use the cable car for commuting! This film stayed clear of all of that.

Lastly, this film managed to take me somewhere I have not been to yet and that’s the MOAD museum. I liked getting a glimpse at some of the installations.

This film made me think, brought up questions that should be looked at and led me around a San Francisco I know, but don’t normally see at the movies.


Medicine for Melancholy