One of the controversies that came with The Color Purple was of how it depicted black men as “caricatured pawns” (Bogle 264). Danny Glovers "Mr." was an abusive and violent husband, which added to the already harmful perception of black men being aggressive, oversexed creatures. Another controversy was that the film being directed by Steven Spielberg, a white man, ended up taking away the crucial component of the story being from the perspective of a poor, unlovable black woman. Spielberg also diluted the books queer themes by toning down the importance of Celie and Shugs sexual relationship.
Another topic that interested me was the buddy buddy film era in the 80s. Movies didn’t reflect the racial tensions within the nation at the time and white audiences loved the relationship dynamic between the professional interracial buddies because of this. The trope could only be legitimized if the black buddy acted as the sidekick to the white one. In the Rocky films, Apollo Creeds boldness mimicked Muhammad Ali, which made white audiences despise him. In the end, order is “restored” by having Apollo defeated by Rocky alongside becoming his friend. Apollo was used to place Rocky back on the pedestal as the traditional white hero, which gave white audiences comfort. The film Lethal Weapon also showcases this by having the black buddy act as the rational, stable cop who extends his hand to his troubled white counterpart. The trope places the black friend as a mixture of both a mammy and tom by having them always there to aid their white friend at any expense.