Dž

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So since some people are deciding to be obtuse and misinterpret me, I’m going to be more specific:

If Clark was White, his fate would have been the same.

If Clark was Latino, his fate would have been the same.

If Clark was Asian, his fate would have been the same

So on and so forth.

Neither Clark’s race, nor the race of any other character, had any actual impact on the plot. The subject of race is never brought up in the movie, and is never a plot point. It does not influence the narrative. Chiwetel Ejiofor was not cast as Clark specifically because he was black, but rather because he was a talented actor who could play the role well and understood the material. I can’t pretend to know inner workings of this film’s production, but I highly doubt Clark’s role was written specifically with a black actor in mind. Anyone could have hypothetically played Clark, and it just so happened to be Chiwetel.

So just because Clark’s actor just so happened to be black, that does not suddenly make the movie a political commentary about black people, and neither do his actions or fate reflect on black people. Yes, Clark has clear problems, and is definitely in the wrong in several situations, but the film establishes is a clear cause and effect for the state that he ends up in by the end, none of which has to do with his race.

And on another note, the still lives are not humans, they only look kinda human on the outside and have fluffy stuffing on the inside. They are literally described as “living furniture”, and they are the only known accessible source of nutritional value in the Backrooms. So no, Clark is not a cannibal for eating them. Kane even alluded to this years ago in an interview where someone asked him if food existed in the Backrooms, and Kane replied with “one a scale of soup to table, how close are you willing to get to table?”

All of this to say, just because Clark is black, that does not automatically mean his role is intended to be a portrayal of black people, and therefore it is not a problematic nor harmful portrayal. Normal people are not going to watch this film and then assume that, based on Clark’s actions and fate, all black people must be insane savage cannibals. Racial commentary in this movie is a completely fabricated and projected subtext.

If you find yourself wandering long enough in the Backrooms, you may start noticing the movement in the corners of your vision. Insects that seem to blend in with the patterns of the endless walls and carpets skitter about, barely noticeable.

Are they really there? It's not so impossible. After all, many species have evolved to live in the basements and attics of human homes. It is likely that populations of them have gotten trapped in this strange dimension the same way you did. Time dilation and other anomalies could lead to their accelerated evolution.