MovieChat Forums > Trap (2024) Discussion > "The Magical Negro" appears in this one!...

"The Magical Negro" appears in this one!...

posted 4 months ago by jcdugger (372)
6 replies | jump to latest

"The Magical Negro"...a supporting stock character who comes to the aid of white protagonists in a film...makes an appearance in Trap! Josh Harnett desperately needs to find a way out of the concert and needs to find out the special password given to the employees...insert The Magical Negro! He, as always, helps a white guy out and moves the story along. I hadn't seen one in quite a few years...the gimmick returned here though. The last time I remember being at the theater and noticing a Magical Negro was from the movie The Invasion (2007) starring Nicole Kidman, so it's been a while. (In The Invasion, a terrified Kidman is about to be found out by the populace to be still human...when a black cop appears and gives her some advice about how not to be recognized, like to stop sweating...then sends her on her way to complete her mission.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magical_Negro

[–] TheHardSell (1709) 3 months ago

The Magical Negro is real and will always aid the whites in times of trouble. Often giving their lives for whites, whites in turn will not granting them another thought after they are dead. The whites will just continue living a perfect life in Laguan Beach.

[–] Kingswood (1260) 3 months ago

LOL, I thought you were going to point out that the negro wasn't killed off like 99% of them are in movies like this one.

[–] Sparky (2582) 3 months ago

Negros ex machina

[–] nufsaid16 (685) 3 months ago

I totally disagree about the concert staff employee being any kind of a "magical negro". He clearly was a true-crime fan who was a little too much enamored of true-crime cases---and obviously never considered the fact that the person he was talking to could be the actual suspect. He wasn't even there specifically to help the main character---he simply was so excited about being part of the secret sting to take down this suspect that he didn't use common sense, and just started blabbing to the wrong person.

There was a funny indie satire that came out earlier this year called The American Society of Magical Negroes, which has fun with and makes fun of the concept--that's worth seeing, lol. Also, Trap was fun to watch, plus the brother was part of a significant change in the plot.

[–] jcdugger (372) 3 months ago

I think the employee fits the definition almost perfectly. Sure, they mixed it up slightly, but it was certainly a Magical Negro. A Magical Negro is typically 1) Friendly and/or Trusted; and 2) Provides the main actor with what he needs to continue on with his/her story. This was clearly the case with the concert staff employee. Whether or not he provided the password as a friend or if he was tricked into it doesn't make any difference. He provided the password that moved the story along. Without the password, Hartnett is caught, and the story is over. The Magical Negro saved the day, from Hartnett's perspective at least.

[–] DarthJJ (341) 3 months ago

Was Lando in Star Wars a magical space negro?