Alma’s Rainbow

Three Black Women in Brooklyn: The teenager Rainbow Gold attempts to escape the tight corset of her Christian school, as well as that of her strict mother Alma. She explores prescribed beauty ideals and the (lack of) rights women have over their bodies. Rainbow Gold receives support and encouragement in her search for new forms of expression from her aunt Ruby who returns to New York after years in Paris. But an argument breaks out between Rainbow, Alma, and Ruby: What is the "correct" upbringing? Chenzira's film asks what agency Black women have and what form it can take. ALMA’S RAINBOW, in which questions of identity are expressed through fashion, dance, and music, was a key film of 1990s independent cinema. (hb)