watched this in a double feature alongside Bless Their Little Hearts, a film that charles burnett wrote and acted as DOP on. similar to Burnett’s prior two features, this one shared the optimism of its middle-class setting. the greater urban setting of south central LA is downplayed in burnett’s films, especially this one, which is mainly shot in interiors or the grounds of the central location. similar to Killer of Sheep, My Brother’s Wedding, Bless Their Little Hearts, and Daughters of the Dust, all films from the LA Rebellion, the narrative is centred around family, with generational continuity a major theme. this thematic content is one angle taken by the movement for an independent black culture. burnett’s strategy of narrative optimism represents a particular political strategy, a socialist realist move of creating from within the value paradigm whose sign one operates under. burnett’s optimism is all three of his films gliding over any direct reference to the racist alignment of the world against black people, instead depicting characters in their setting, having conflicts around familial dynamics.