Just Another Girl on the I.R.T.

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Just Another Girl on the I.R.T
JustAnotherGirlOnTheIRT.jpg
Film poster
Directed byLeslie Harris
Written byLeslie Harris
Produced byLeslie Harris
Irwin Wilson
StarringAriyan A. Johnson
Kevin Thigpen
Ebony Jerido
CinematographyRichard Conners
Edited byJack Haigis
Music byEric Sadler
Production
company
Distributed byMiramax Films
Release dates
  • September 17, 1992 (1992-09-17) (Toronto Film Festival)
  • March 19, 1993 (1993-03-19) (United States)
Running time
92 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$100,000
Box office$479,169

Just Another Girl on the I.R.T. is a 1992 American drama film written, produced, and directed by Leslie Harris. The film follows Chantel, a black teenager living in the New York City projects. The film addresses a variety of contemporary social and political issues including teenage pregnancy, abortion, racism, poverty, and HIV/AIDS. Just Another Girl is Harris' first and only feature film.

The "I.R.T." in the film's title refers to the IRT Lexington Avenue Line of the New York City Subway system.

Plot[]

Chantel Mitchell (Ariyan A. Johnson) is an African-American, 17-year-old high school junior who lives in Brooklyn, New York. Chantel is very smart, although her sharp tongue, abundant ego, and occasional naivete undermine her efforts. Her ultimate dream is to leave her poor neighborhood, go to college, and eventually become a doctor. Throughout the film, Chantel breaks the fourth wall and explains that she wants to be seen as more than just another teenage black girl on the subway.

She lives with her struggling working class parents and her two younger brothers. With her mother working during the day and her father working the night shift and hence sleeping all day, Chantel is given the responsibility of taking care of her brothers in addition to going to school full-time and working a part-time job at a local grocery store. However, she earns mostly As and Bs in school, and is fully determined to receive an education beyond her primary one. Much to the chagrin of her teachers, she wants to graduate early in order to get into college as soon as possible. Her dream is tested with her constant clashes with her school's administration, and her recent romantic involvement with her seemingly rich boyfriend Tyrone (Kevin Thigpen). She becomes pregnant and undermines herself with false confidence and lack of real worldly knowledge.

Cast[]

  • Ariyan A. Johnson as Chantel Mitchell
  • Kevin Thigpen as Tyrone
  • Ebony Jerido as Natete
  • Chequita Jackson as Paula
  • Jerard Washington as Gerard
  • Tony Wilkes as Owen Mitchell
  • Karen Robinson as Debra Mitchell
  • Johnny Roses as Mr. Weinberg
  • Kisha Richardson as Lavonica
  • Monet Cherise Dunham as Denisha
  • Wendell Moore as Mr. Moore
  • William Badgett as Cedric

Production[]

The film was shot entirely in New York City. With a budget of only $100,000, the entire film was reportedly shot in just 17 days.[1] It screened at the Sundance Film Festival to acclaim, winning a special jury prize and securing distribution with Miramax.[2]

Critical reception and legacy[]

The film received mostly positive reviews upon its release. Just Another Girl has a "fresh" rating of 67% at the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes.[3] Positive reviews noted Ariyan Johnson's performance as Chantel, stating she "seizes the camera's attention like no other performer since John Travolta strutted into Saturday Night Fever."[4] Other critics described the film as "awkward" or "uneven."

Since release, Just Another Girl on the I.R.T. has been praised as a pioneering film about black Americans, in particular a film directed by a black woman, and is regularly screened at film festivals. One critic has argued the film "open[ed] the door" for future projects such as Crooklyn, Akeelah and the Bee, and The Hate U Give.[5] 28 years later, A New Yorker review in 2020 stated that the film captures the complex social pressures facing a black teenage girl and argued filmmakers have "dared not do another film like it."[6]

Despite her film receiving positive reviews, Harris was unable to produce any further feature-length films. Her career has drawn comparisons to other black women directors such as Julie Dash, who similarly premiered a film at Sundance but struggled to green-light future projects. According to Harris, despite the success of black directors such as Spike Lee and John Singleton, the film industry was hostile to black women, and she could not arrange funding for any other projects.[2]

Home entertainment release[]

It was released on VHS in October 1993, and on DVD in May 2002.

References[]

  1. ^ Just Another Girl on the I.R.T. - Trailer - Cast - Showtimes - The New York Times
  2. ^ a b Marshell, Kyla (12 July 2018). "Leslie Harris: 'You just can't get a film financed with a black woman lead'". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
  3. ^ Just Another Girl on the I.R.T. Movie Reviews, Pictures - Rotten Tomatoes
  4. ^ Hinson, Hal (April 2, 1993). "Just Another Girl on the I.R.T." The Washington Post. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
  5. ^ Young, Tyler (27 August 2018). "The Lasting Appeal of 'Just Another Girl on the I.R.T.'". Shondaland. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
  6. ^ Brody, Richard (24 January 2020). "The Still Astonishing "Just Another Girl on the I.R.T."". The New Yorker. Retrieved 11 September 2021.

External links[]

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