Eve’s Bayou (1997) Is Traumatizing!

Eve's Bayou is a 1997 American Southern Gothic drama film written and directed by Kasi Lemmons, who made her directorial debut with this film. Samuel L. Jackson served as a producer, and starred in the film with Lisa Nicole Carson, Jurnee Smollett, Lynn Whitfield, Debbi Morgan, Meagan Good and Diahann Carroll. The premiered at the 1997 Toronto International Film Festival and was released in theaters on November 7, 1997. The film grossed $14 million domestically on a budget of $4 million, making it the most commercially successful independent film of 1997.
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[@StruggleReviewzTV]

Thank you to all the new people watching this video 💕 Don’t judge I probably said “like” and “you know” 27,000 times lmao but this was when Struggles was really struggling! Ya Girl is confident in her reviews now 💕🤣

[@jasmineking8040]

Lol love your reviews and growth

[@nellywilliams2776]

Just found you and subscribed!! You’re beautiful ❤

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

@@nellywilliams2776 thank you!

[@marig9236]

I always saw this film as a souther gothic film with a hint of mystery. I have also seen on youtube this theory its about abuse. A very sad film with great acting.

[@UniversalMokenTroll]

He never physically molested her. She tried to kiss him like a grown woman would kiss a grown man.

[@jasmineking8040]

The father is guilty of emotional incest. He treated cicely like the wife and when she acted on it because she didn’t want her father to leave the family… ( she thought she was giving him what her mother wasn’t giving him to keep him from leaving the family for Mrs Monroe ) so when she came to him that night he reprimanded her. But it was his fault he blurred the lines . He made cicely her mothers adversary. So yeah i definitely blame him not cicely .

[@ristobenjie]

Nah, he just wasn't on the same page with his wife unfortunately and her Electra complex took it there

[@lauriebertramroberts8990]

I came to say this

[@MsMoneyonMyMind]

Everything in your assessment is spot on! Except idk if I would say he treated Cicely like the wife. He indulged her clear adversarial (great choice of words you used) moments with her mother too much because while the mother’s love was waning, he knew she loved him unconditionally and as he put it in the scene when he was about to leave to go screw *eh hem* call on his patients lol, “that’s all I need.”

[@sparkwill5337]

This is the most sound and grounded comment.

[@jaebyrd4608]

It's surprises me so many adults still think Cecily is to blame even after the father stated in his letter that he knew his daughter would come to him that night. He knew she would try to comfort him and he said he waited up for it because he wanted to feel her comfort. He said he welcomed the first kiss. He said he allowed the second and that it took him a second to realize he was kissing his daughter like a woman. I believe he slapped her because he was afraid that he wouldn’t resist his daughter if she continued what she was doing. I think his slapped came from his fear of how he felt more than how she felt. Because after it happened he acted distant from her and he suggested she see a obgyn which makes me wonder why since surely as a medical doctor he knows a period is normal and nothing to see a doctor for so why did he suggest it? It sincerely makes me wonder if he made up slapping her because he couldn’t admit to what he actually did.

[@luckyrite4562]

I also find it funny that the father had no visible relationship with his son like he did with his daughters

[@LedePat]

Exactly

[@TheRealShanyeWest]

right she was def groomed and it would makes sense for him to deny it

[@MsButterflyJan1976]

Great point.

[@tjiggs01]

Very true!

[@lv2756]

There was a son ??

[@prodigykitty3614]

About the start of Cici's period. She came from an educated family with a medical background. She was well prepared for her menstruation. Something else traumatized her. The film brings to light the dark tradition of young girls being "sent away" to protect a family secret and the prominent Male who is the offender.

[@jama3997]

That’s what I said. Why would this girl be worried about a period. They have a father who is a doctor, and are always in adult business with no filter. It ain’t no coincidence this girl bleeding the day after a sexually inappropriate interaction with her father, sitting in the tub for hours and crying over blood. It would not be no damn period

[@songsalon7868]

​@@jama3997 Interesting, but probably not.

[@songsalon7868]

It was her period, she was period age. Interesting view though. The father did not sexually molest her. It would have been shown. Cicely was the eldest, a daddys girl, and all of the women in the house were always angry at him for cheating. She was never groomed, never molested. For most girls, the first Man you fall in Love with is your Father. Some girls don't understand the boundaries. Point, Blank, Period

[@ratdog6317]

​@@songsalon7868 "it would have been shown" no it wouldn't have. many writers and directors don't feel comfortable actually portraying that on screen so they heavily imply it instead.

[@AvnueC]

Watch the Director’s Cut. It’ll clear up a lot of ambiguity. Although the father/daughter relationship was inappropriate, the daughter crossed the line with the kiss.

[@giancarlojacobs9982]

I always found it very interesting how Samuel L. Jackson and Debbie Morgan were brother and sister in this movie and one was a medical doctor while one was a spiritual guide.

[@spazarellapoet8735]

Interesting duality

[@kiwthebeauty]

Healers on two different spectrums

[@io7625]

And both had been unfaithful to their spouses

[@Nirobiscloset10]

Interesting take.

[@sabisweet]

@@io7625 with each other 🤮🤮🤮🤮

[@kaylynloves]

Every time I see baby Jurnee in this movie all I hear is “GET OUTTA THE DAMN TUB!!!!” 😂😂😂

[@blurhapsody1739]

That line unlocks memories of this movie being on in the background at my Granny’s house. Lol

[@jalondradavis2473]

I attended a director's cut screening of this film recently. It showed more of what happens at the end. It is not very different, but the vision of what happened between Cicely and her father is from the perspective of the disabled uncle who was sitting downstairs watching the whole thing. The glass that breaks in this scene is the uncle knocking down the glass on purpose to stop what was happening, and it looks as if Louis slaps Cicely after she pulls away as the glass breaks. It doesn't fully resolve the questions around the scene but think it does suggest more strongly than the theatre cut that Louis was in the wrong. It's disgusting the way that so many people hate Cicely's character and judge her as fast, and really mirrors the way in which Black girls get villanized for their own abuse. I don't think Louis physically assaulted Cicely beyond that scene on the chair, (though that scene with her period does raise questions...) but he is at the very least guilty of emotional incest and terrible boundaries. At once point he slow danced with her while comparing her mother's body to a lumpy pillow. Ew.

[@ratdog6317]

I think maybe he didn't full on assault her but maybe had made an attempt to prior to that which is why she was acting so off, and why she said that "I don't want you touching me" line

[@BigBossKandie23]

Tbh in Louis eyes that was his baby girl, to everybody else she was viewed as a daddy's girl which there's nothing wrong with that. Because of her impairment in perception, It was only through Cisely eyes that that was her man. She didn't know her place that's why her mom had to put hands on her. One thing I will say When it comes to a man in his family having time is important because as you can see, they all want his attention, and they are all competing for it and sometimes this cause issues between the women in the house because they either turn on each, turn on the man or someone looks for that affection somewhere else. In this situation the mother stuck beside her man and both daughters turned on the father Cisely Lied on Louis and Eve sought to have him killed. Also, another issue is after a situation like that rather than addressing the situation the father and the mother just avoided it. The father by not talking about and not reiterating those boundaries which is major. The mother as well by not allowing her to stay up waiting for him and sending her off. After that incident they both should have set her down and explained to her she is a child. When she first called herself raising her voice at her mom, dad, model, and her husband they should have told her to stay in a child's place and get out of grown folks' business but everybody she was right so everybody think Shes mature but she really not. She's doing what she see's other adults do but she doesn't have the mind of one.

[@user-cv6dw4nl2g]

@@BigBossKandie23this is exactly how a groomer would think.

[@BigBossKandie23]

Luis never told her how to @@user-cv6dw4nl2g Luis was a father figured and acted as such. Cici was taught the ways of a lady by emulating her mom. The mom taught her how to be lady like. It was the mother who was grooming her but to be real they weren't necessarily wrong in the matter. After the situation they should have reestablished the family structure and boundaries she wasn't groomed to be Luis's lover she was being groomed to be a lady in hopes that she will marry in the future. Boys must be groomed to be proper husbands long before they are married. If you look Michael Jackson was groomed to perform, Michael Jordan was groomed to play basketball. Some ppl are groomed to be musicians, business owners and even preachers. the negative connotation of grooming your speaking of is an issue when the wrong person has influence over a child. For example like the guy who raised his now ex wife daughter from a child to eventually marrying her now that is weird and immoral. Although grooming cant be proven it does raise some questions. Luis's situation was not like that

[@SmokeNonYaDeadHomies]

@@user-cv6dw4nl2gspeaking from experience?

[@winterfall2735]

The ironic crazy part is before she even went to see the fortune teller Eve had already sealed her dad's fate when she told Mr Monroe that his wife and her dad were the lonely type

[@msellaloca]

Facts if anything it the spell was amplifier for the timeline

[@winterfall2735]

@@msellaloca exactly what see people don't really realize with tarot is time is moving infinitely between all realms instantaneously but basically how I can sum everything up is what's done is done past future and present that's why there are no mistakes made so you just have to live your life

[@shanece722]

There is no way that the bloody underwear scene was simply pointing out her period. Who finds out they bled through their panties, takes them off and leaves them on the floor and then lays BACK down and wakes up ready to commit arson💀. And right after she’s extremely resentful and didn’t even want him to look at her body. Something was off and that scene had a lot more to unpack below the surface. A lot of SA cases they look for blood in the underwear. And it’s hard to even believe his letter when he’s been manipulating his whole family.

[@caramia4143]

I thought they looked for traces of semen in the underwear since nowadays, women are more active compared to the past are more likely to have broken their hymen though non-sexual activities like sports/athletics.

[@shanece722]

@@caramia4143 a lot of victims still bleed because of the force and friction.

[@shanece722]

@@caramia4143 broken hymen or not

[@layah28]

Well if that blood is from the sexual assault, Lewis is a bold Muthafucka to suggest to take Cisely to a female doctor to get looked at knowing a doctor can easily tell if she was recently assaulted 🤷🏽‍♀️

[@vibin.lowk3y]

Right I think he took her virginity

[@Gigglingsiren]

You are the first person I have ever seen to review this movie. This is actually one of my favorite movies. Also, I don't think he was really sleeping with his daughter. She had an unnatural attachment to him and she thought she needed to be the woman she thought her mother wasn't. I think the hurt she experienced when he slapped her was mostly the hurt of being rejected by someone she loved.

[@jaswilliam2739]

Girl you realize she tried to kiss her like she was a grown woman

[@glossyshaelove3740]

Well said I agree🙏

[@sway7479]

Exactly.

[@niaashleybeavers542]

The problems with this idea that it’s all on the daughter is that he was a liar and deceitful. He absolutely groomed and raped her once. He paid to get her hair done like her moms. The way she told the story was that he wouldn’t stop kissing her. And slapped her for pulling away… then she “got her period” the next day. It seemed like he was more willing to pin it on her than to admit what he did and tarnish his reputation. And we all were just as fooled as his character would want us. He groomed that baby for years before the camera was rolling.

[@msAK85]

The child was groomed to adore him and replace the mother. The father loved being adored, "seen as a hero", but his wife only saw a man. He was molding his daughter which is why she acts a certain way with the mother, plus she cuts her hair like her mothers. Where she get the money to go to the salon? When Cicely told her sister what happened it wasnt clear. Trauma can block memories "but in time memories will become more clear. " The narrator made that clear at the end. She just turned 14 and was very confused about what happened. Plus the aunt minimized her brothers behavior, I hated that but thats how it was and still is. The aunt is a self loathing person, and couldnt see the truth; which was the aunts weakness that blinded her. Now that I'm older I'm able to see it now, the movie is like through a child's eyes, so its not clear, but theres a lot of clues. One scene where Eve asks him if he had other children and he played a joke with her to ask why she would ask something so stupid then tried to rid of her by telling her to go home. He then told her to race him to the hospital instead, when she runs off he had a concerned look.

[@mobellescorner9702]

What I got from the movie is that we actually never found out what really happened. We saw the “truth” through each of their eyes. At the end when she touch her sister and saw what she was feeling she realized her sister believed she was telling the truth. I think the father believed he was telling the truth too if that makes sense.

[@theprincess222]

This is also my exact view point. How they mentioned that memory is a tapestry of colors that changes by the light.

[@pippiesroom4822]

Exactly. He was drunk that night and slapped her. They really don’t know what happened. It’s like we are assuming that he’s grooming her… or she was seducing him. But if you take out that ONE SCENE…. She just looks like the golden child whose perfectly a daddy’s girl! That one scene that changes the story is actually blurry in what actually took place. Was it a daughters kiss that he mistook as advancement because he was drunk? Or was it a daughter who actually kissed her father in a daughterly way, and because he was drunk he mistook her for one of his whores and actually violated her. And when she fought him off, he slapped her because he was drunk? We will never know! I wish it were more clear though. But I guess they leave it blurry on purpose

[@jefferytorres1151]

This is wat I get from it too

[@thealchemist5761]

Cissy showed Eve what happened and the Father confirmed what happened in the letter. That's why Eve was mad. Eve thought he was being a predator when Cissy actually initiated the inappropriate behavior.

[@pippiesroom4822]

@@thealchemist5761 no cissy didn’t show anything to eve. She blacked out what happened after the first kiss and before the slap. She said she couldn’t remember! She just knows he hurt her really bad.

[@Gods.honeybee]

This film was designed to do what we’re doing….discussing. Designed to get you to see that all that glitters ain’t gold. I believe it was written to spark conversation about “taboo” things that happen within families. Through out generations we see certain behaviors and they do not get addressed. Communication is key. A lot of us when we were little were told to stay in a child’s place. Secrets and whispers is what keeps our people from forward movement. Cycles just being repeated over + over. My fav character was eve. I saw many things in my family tree and couldn’t speak on them cause I’m a child. Eve spoke up and shook the room. She saw how each family member had their ways. No one in the family wanted to talk but Eve. Everyone else wanted to hide and sweep shit under the rug. Not knowing the family tea, or family history has stunted + hurt a lot of generations.

[@ameyahcarter118]

i agree with this theory however i believe cicely i believe the men die romantically, mentally,emotionally, morally ( why he did what he did to cecily ) and then physcially

[@blah5528]

I feel like people don’t have sympathy for cicely THATS HOW YALL MISSED IT! People are so quick to say “she’s too grown” and that’s just that. Like no! Her behavior is bc of his actions. So sad.

[@Nirobiscloset10]

Great point!

[@TheodoreBakes]

yep and thats still something people, especially in our community, do! even with grown women, anything that happens to them, people look to find how did she provoke it or find what she did to deserve it. if its anything that can be called sexual, inappropriate, or "grown" she automatically deserves whatever happened to her i.e. megan the stallion and tory lanez situation.

[@monty2463]

How you grown at 15 with weird viewpoints like hers.

[@prodigykitty3614]

Not to oppress the will of children, but it's up to good parents to protect children and keep them in the appropriate realm....which is OUT OF GROWN FOLKS BUSINESS. A child should not feel "grown" around adults

[@chantellemarie5593]

Are we all forgetting this movie plot has roots in voodoo.

[@ddivar]

I love this movie. I saw it when I was 14 and I saw Louis as a predator, but I now believe his story about rejecting Cissy. It wasn’t until I was a bit older, that I started thinking that it was Louis if not all the Batiste by blood that were actually cursed. Women are drawn to Louis, they beg him for attention, including his now pubescent daughter and even Eve to a less creepy extent. We were explicitly shown and told how women chased after him. These women would lead to his tragic death. Mozelle has the same effect on men, but it is the men that die tragically. The Batiste family has a notable lack of males. Roz would move on to marry a loving husband, bc she is free from living under Louis’ curse. Eve’s is cursed to carry the guilt of causing her fathers death and Cissy is cursed with guilt that her not remembering the incident and telling a story out of anger, setting the plot in motion. The Batiste men are cursed to tragically die, while the women cause men to meet their tragic end.

[@BFFFL1492]

Oooh, I like this perspective!

[@theprincess222]

This is a great perspective

[@RoyalAbundance]

I love your perspective!

[@SagittariusGirl2008]

Interesting perspective!! I have to watch it again now.

[@Just_Liv]

I agree! Even the psychic that Eve went to mentioned that she buried Louis where all the “other Batiste men” were buried

[@melanatedj9660]

The movie was so disturbing to me, I have a daughter and honestly I wouldn't even allow her to play a role like this.

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

And yes Samuel Jackson and Meagan Good actually kissing is an entirely different video! Along with the inappropriate Lolita movie, Kristen Dunst in Interview with a Vampire and Brook Shields in many of her younger roles it was a THING 😳

[@melanatedj9660]

@@StruggleReviewzTV Yea it's not that much money in the world, you're pumping your child... it's super weird.

[@marklouis1890]

@@StruggleReviewzTV they actually kissed that's really disturbing

[@ayeilak5]

Cissy had an electra complex like alot of daddy's girls have just like Baby in Dirty dancing it's very unhealthy. For men it's the Oedipus Complex were men are momma's boys which is unhealthy too.

[@oleander7635]

@@ayeilak5 "electra complexes" aren't real. they're a disproven theory created by freud, something he admitted to making up. he fabricated it to make it seem as though girls and women were lying about being molested by their fathers because their fathers were colleagues of freud's.

[@beautywbri7540]

The way Sam Jackson’s face would immediately change after a character would turn their back on him scared me. I rewatched it last night and he was scary.

[@cameashaflowers1527]

Wow I just realized that now that you pointed out.

[@cameashaflowers1527]

Very creepy

[@beautywbri7540]

@@cameashaflowers1527 this was a master class in acting

[@snickerdoodle212]

True definition of sociopathic tendencies.

[@sabisweet]

He IS scary

[@charleebowens4057]

It’s so nice to unpack this movie, because it’s definitely one of my favorites. Now as an adult, watching this movie is more powerful, because now we can look at it from a different angle. I do believe Samuel l Jackson’s role, was one of great manipulation. He knew how to get women and rattle women. There’s the scene with his wife. Sister, and mother sitting discussing him. The women around town admired him because of his status as a doctor, as well as his own daughters craving his attention. He knew how to play off women’s emotions. I think he realized how far his persona was going when his daughter was looking at him inappropriately and tried to kiss him. I don’t believe he realized this when he was hurting his wife by cheating. I truly believe he didn’t really grasp it, until his daughter crossed the line, as he ended up writing a letter about it. I think now in hindsight, that was a warning to him of his ways, that he did not adhere too! I don’t believe he crossed the line with his daughters. I just feel like he enjoyed and was good at manipulating women, even his own children! I do believe cici admired and resented her mother. She knew her mother was beautiful, but couldn’t wrap her mind around why all that beauty still made her dad stray so that irritated her where she wanted to be classy and present herself like her mother, (getting her hair cut like her mothers) but not deal with her father In an angry way like her mother, to run him off. This is a tale of how a father’s ego can destroy a family! He ultimately died behind ego! Taunting a man for being with his wife. If you really look at the movie, almost every woman we see, their attention is focused on Samuel l Jackson’s character. The sister, his mother, the wife, his daughters, the mistress, the voodoo queen! So powerful! He played with all the women in his life, which ended up with him losing his behind lust and ego! He mis handled the admiration that the women in his family had for him.

[@thealchemist5761]

I don't think Cicely was being groomed. She had no guidance because there was litterally no communication in that family. When ever we saw the inappropriate behavior it was Cicely initiating it and her father nor her mother bothered to set any boundaries or have a conversation with her. They didn't notice that she was developing inappropriate feelings for her father until it got out of hand. Groomers encourage inappropriate behavior and her father didn't.

[@sofineshesmine]

They're encouraging her by not setting boundaries and not having a conversation.

[@shahnjaylaconnors1476]

I think Cissy was truly in love with her father and her dad was too busy to realize what had happened until that night in the storm He knew a line had been crossed, he panicked, and slapped her. Cissy was heartbroken because she felt the ultimate betrayal of her father rejecting her not as a daughter, but as the woman she wants to be for him.

[@sparkwill5337]

Agreed

[@Apricityville]

This is exactly it. It definitely was not giving that he molested her, or anything inappropriate like that. Cecily was for sure trying to be the perfect woman for her father and when he slapped her, after she was kissing him like a grown woman, she was deeply hurt... which is why she started acting distant toward him. Definitely don't think the blood was from any sexual trauma.

[@jabellatv3240]

Exactly i don't think she was groomed when you realize that this movie was based on back back in the day when women or girls would be married and have kids at a very young age so they were taught to be wives at an very early age which was wrong but in the deep south and back then that's how girls were raised to be young women and how to be a wife so Cissy acting older than her age was not really her fault but her environment she was raised in so she thought she was doing the right thing she definitely knew what she was doing but she didn't know any better

[@zsmith7590]

True, yet, what about when she was waiting up for her dad and he asked her; "What you doing up"?, and she said to him; " What you think im doing up"?. He smiled. I'm just saying, not accusing. Happy Holidays!

[@N.O.V.E]

@@jabellatv3240 you're right and wrong at the same time when she kissed him she wasn't even a woman yet. She had her period way later on in the movie

[@Lilacimpressions]

I’m just beginning this video. Eve’s Bayou is one of my very fave, near and dear to me movies. Black Southern culture, bayou life, family dynamics, clairvoyance, fashion, home life, beauty of nature and my people. I love it all. Yet underneath, there are some controversies that I never saw as a young person, within this family’s dynamics. I love to hear other people’s views on this! Thank you!

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

Thanks for watching 💕

[@cynthiagipson8039]

They played the hell out that movie

[@cruisecontrol7911]

me too! I'm reading everyone's views on this!

[@empressyaya6927]

I absolutely love your commentary. I can tell this was a difficult one to review because of the nature of the subject matter. 'Eves Bayou' is one of my all time favorite movies. The bottom line is Louis Batiste just wasn't sh*t! He knew it, he said as much in his 'confession' letter when he described himself as just a country doctor, pushing pills. His family (even his own momma knew it). His wife knew it, but she compromised her integrity because she loved the lifestyle he provided. Unfortunately like many women in her situation, she turned a blind eye to the inappropriate relationship between the father and daughter until it was blatantly out of hand. Aunt Mozelle knew it also; I think she tried to protect her nieces from the trauma that she herself had experienced. If you recall, Aunt Mozelle (who was my favorite character in the movie) was for the streets with regard to her past relationships, and it resulted in her being very unhappy and broken. It was apparent that Aunt Mozelle has the gift of sight, and Eve did as well; Eve was her little MiniMe. I think Mozelle was trying to break generational curses, because Cicely was slowly morphing into her momma, who was clearly a broken woman.Dr. Batiste's patients knew he wasn't sh*t; the two instances that depicted this were when the young woman/patient just wanted to have sex with him, and the older woman placed more faith in Aunt Mozelle's amulet than in his medicine. I think the hurt that Cecily experienced was not so much the inappropriate relationship that she had with him, because that was apparent the entire movie. I think the hurt came because she had such an idealistic view of him, and she finally realized that he was just a regular, smegular, dusty ol man. That slap he gave her was what snapped her into reality, and knocked him off of the pedestal that she had built for him, because up until then she thought she was going to replace her mother in his life. While the relationship was inappropriate, Dr. Batiste did finally realize that he had created a monster because of the liberties he allowed Cicely to take with their relationship, and it wasn't cute anymore because the boundary's were no longer intact.

[@classicutie93]

I'm from the south, Louisiana specifically. This is so triggering I can barely even watch it. It's so true to form. That girl was def being groomed. And that night she bathed herself her father had in fact gone too far. I would bet money that when the writer had the father slap her, it's literally a movie manifestation form of a drunk ass man realizing that he did the ultimate sin of harming her and they just couldn't show the reality. Louisiana is the only state with drive thru alcohol, legally flashing yourself on the street to people, our prime form of dancing is steeped in spirit ism and almost possessed, and a French heritage that JUST allowed it to be illegal to have sex with someone under the age of 14 in the old country. Before 2022 there was no legal age that you couldn't have sex with someone. Our culture is different and sick and tbh this bs is very common.

[@tablettablet3339]

Louisiana is not the only state with drive-thru alcohol.

[@5014chizuka]

My sister was just like Cecily. My father was serial cheater, and tried to make my mom and my older sister fight over him. I was a middle child and just like Eve, always know that I’m not his favorite. But after I become an adult, I found myself living independently. But not my sister unfortunately… She still talks ill about my mom how she was not enough for dad. And how she knows what’s best for our family. Poor daddy…etc. A kid doesn’t need to be physically abused, if you were groomed. Grooming is already abuse its self.

[@lucybarrington4634]

That’s profound. It really hit me. “Grooming is already abuse its self.”

[@blacknbougie8021]

Whew chile this was heavy! As a child I was just smitten with the whole atmosphere, the beauty of the characters, seeing a prominent black family that lived well and wasn't being oppressed. I remember feeling some parts were a bit off and maybe a little inappropriate but my young mind didn't process it. I honestly looked at Eve and her sister as spoiled brats who didn't appreciate what they had😫😫😫silly me🤦🏽‍♀️ I'm gonna take a look with these 40 yr old eyes and dissect it.... Excellent breakdown as usual 👍🏽

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

Me too this movie looks totally different to me and thank you for watching ❤️

[@jasper1949]

@@StruggleReviewzTV Watch the movie get out and tales from the hood do a reviews on em!

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

@@jasper1949 kzbin.info/www/bejne/nnO9i3eqeLaen5o Tales From The Hood is done 😭

[@jasper1949]

@@StruggleReviewzTV ok I didn’t fully see everything on your channel my bad lol

[@sparkwill5337]

I don’t think she was groomed. I think she had a warped perspective. She was struggling with becoming a woman and keeping her father with the family. Her father slapping her felt like rejection. She couldn’t handle that.

[@momitchell2418]

I was between the age of Cissy and her little sister at the time this movie came out. All I can remember my mom wouldn't let us watch it with her and her friends, we had to sneak in and catch bits and pieces. Any movie that we weren't allowed to watch we were even more curious. Now as an adult, I watched it and became very disturbed that Megan Good was allowed to play such a role at a time where I wasn't even allowed to watch the film. We were almost the same age.

[@HypeLemonade]

I’m interested in how she trained for this role.

[@assataknox1707]

Meagan admitted that she and Jurnee were affected by some of the heavier scenes

[@blaquespan5316]

Hollywierd

[@blaquespan5316]

Weird

[@destinixshakur]

‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️ I always felt this way! When I saw her in this I was like “ why tf they got her doing this “ very weird

[@aliliv9384]

This movie speak alot to the black family dynamics. Alot of our children don't live there childhood and become adults way before time. Alot of women making excuse for mens poor behavior and covers up for them. Saying or trying to display that everything is ok when it's not. Too many secrets. This movie is like a mirror to alot our short comings.

[@BecomingZakah]

I never got that he was sexually attracted to his daughter. She was definitely his favorite child and was daddy’s little girl, but I never got that he groomed her. She started to look at her father in a romantic way and he didn’t fully understand until she kissed him which caught him off guard. I still love this movie, been watching it since I was a kid.

[@KeeYoung_]

This I agree with!

[@xyanaknowels2550]

yeah I agree with this I don’t feel like she was groomed unless something happened prior to this that made her look at him in that way- but I don’t think he looked at her like that. But after seeing this video I do have a different POV that some boundaries were crossed

[@shaylynmarie9572]

I always think, how do child actors/actress & adult actor/actresses feel when filming these roles ? 🤔 they don’t feel weird working with kids in weird movies like this ?

[@missvida6251]

It’s not their children and actors have a different mindset. Most know they are acting and they literally go out of themselves to execute a role

[@CK-ky6ky]

Smart writing. Trust should never be something you give just because of BLOOD but of consistent actions

[@ritab5620]

Enjoyed your review. Movie has so many layers. Adults who put their children in "grown folks' business ". Can't stand when family members support male family members in wrongdoings.

[@CK-ky6ky]

Look at them. Something more than a slap and a kiss happened. Blocked the rape out or coerced to say otherwise

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

Yes !

[@CK-ky6ky]

Cisely breaks down crying and says their father "hurt her so bad." One slap and a kiss "hurt her so bad"? sound like an attack

[@ijn1216]

The scariest element is Meagan Good was 16 in that movie, and kissed a grown man. Am I the only one disturbed by this? When I was younger, how did this fly? I love both Good and Jackson but ...

[@aesha9387]

Actually she was 14

[@notapplicable687]

Wow she looked way younger than 16 I thought she was 13/14 when she played this role. She looks underdeveloped for a 16 year old.

[@SIRCITYART]

Deb definitely knew how her brother was . She spoke in parables.

[@EmpressChernobyl]

Yeah I had to be too young watching this because a LOT flew under my radar😳 It allllll makes sense now😮 I literally took my butt to HBO max and watched the movie again before listening to your review because it’s been at least a decade since I’d last seen it 😂 It’s crazy how maturity can open your eyes to a lot of things. Excellent review!!!

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

Thank you ❤️

[@mahoganymuffin2628]

This is one of my favorite movies of all time. It is SO underrated. Aunt Mozelle was my favorite character and I became a Debbie Morgan fan for life. She deserved an Oscar for her role. I personally do not feel that Louis abused his daughter. He was a low down womanizer and a cheat, but a child abuser he is not. I just did not get that from the film. I do see how people may have seen it that way though. The film is definitely up for individual interpretation.

[@SandraBWard]

I so agree with you, from the first time I saw this movie, Debbie Morgan acted her behind off in this movie. Definitely, definitely Oscar worthy acting.

[@msellaloca]

Definitely Oscar worthy performance but on the dad what do you say on the aunts letter to him found later asking him what transpired

[@nasayzaamei]

He was grooming her but I don’t think that he realized it until the kiss , he enjoyed the grown feminine energy that she was providing but as soon as she acted on it, he got upset with her. She wasn’t grown or fast , He did things that made her feel like it was OK to take things to the next level and to initiate the kiss. I don’t think that he ever wanted to take things to the next level with cicily, but it was his fault nonetheless because he entertained every bit of it. That’s why when his sister read the note that he left she didn’t blame cicily she knew that her brother played a big part in the situation.

[@vibin.lowk3y]

But the blood on her underwear after she saw her dad...

[@your.beautiful.mind.now.]

Dead on! One part that caught me was how Cissy re-told and manipulated what Eve saw... she's 14. How would she know to do that to cover for him? Who did she learn that from? Most girls would immediately tell the Mom, yet Cissy mimicked what predators do with re-writing the memory. He was definitely grooming her and harmed her. Aunt Moselle actually confronted her brother about what he did to Cisely. She saw a split second of what happened to Cissy when she told Eve to touch her hands. I think she knew and was trying to figure out what was going on before it blew up in case it wasn't true.

[@Ashley_Magnolia]

I think there’s also something to the hair color of the children. Eve and Poe have their father’s side genes. Mozelle, who is Louis’ sister, has the same red curly locks they do. I think Eve has some of the supernatural gift that’s on their side and doesn’t know it yet. Cicily on the hand has dark features like her mother. Her adversary and they have the most in common. Kasi lemons could have given them all red hair but she didn’t. I think there’s something more to that that I’m missing.

[@nikole404]

I noticed this. Good point! Hence even Mozelle and Eve had a very close relationship!

[@Lillwooo]

And Mozelle told Eve in the house “yall are my children”

[@MissAmeriNegro]

Just watched this movie and I was speechless the acting and the storyline is beyond amazing. I believe that Cicely was groomed. In the very beginning the father was dancing in inappropriately with his mistress then dances with cicely, then Eve confronts him on it and asks why he never dances with her afte she catches him sleeping with Maddie. Then Eve tells cicely what she saw she and cicely rewrites the story. When the mother went to see the psychic they were locked in the house and that’s when I believe the incest first got physical because Cicely was locking herself in the bathroom for hours at a time. Then you notice her growing anger with her mother. The day she went to see her dad and came back with her hair cut and red lipstick the mom blew up on the dad and told Cicely not to stay up waiting for him anymore and I think that’s when she really caught on to it. The next morning Mozels vision comes true and a child is hit and that’s same night was when it happened but with rage. The blood in her panties were from the rape and not her period and that’s why she blew up on Eve! She went mute, wasn’t speaking of eating and she chose to move away. She blacked it out and that’s why she couldn’t remember but if you skip to the end of the movie when Eve reads the letter. You can tell that Mozel saw what happened and asked him about because in the letter he’s trying to cover up what he did. So Eve read the letter and confronted cicely but at this time Eves psychic powers had grown and when she read cicely she saw what really happened she went from rage to empathy and they got rid of the letter.

[@KreativeKontrolz]

Wow, you deciphered it the best yet. I always loved the movie but the new aspect saddens me because I can see it.

[@moniquespellman103]

I think their relationship went from daddy’s little girl and her adoring her father to it becoming weird and inappropriate. I felt like the dad is at fault for entertaining the things that Cicely was doing and not setting boundaries between them. Hence him waiting for her to come downstairs which lead to the kiss. As far as Cicely being “hurt real bad” I think it was from her dad hitting her as she stated, “ he never hit me before” and that came as a betray to her and she even could’ve felt rejected. When it comes to the total truth I think that it’s some of what Cicely said ( him hitting her) and some of what Lewis said ( them kissing like lover’s) I think that’s why Eve got rid of the letter. Why get rid of the letter if you suspect your dads lying and Cicely telling the whole truth.

[@vainsmith]

This film right here! This film has been on my mind off and on for years. I was a kid when I saw this movie & boy did it OPEN my eyes to some ish. It's definitely one of those kind of disturbing films that just makes you cringe at everything & everyone in it. The cast is amazing. I wouldn't trade any of them for any other actors / actresses. It's the storyline. It's draining, it's dark & sinister. I felt like Eve though. Pops was so damn wrong. It taught me a lot about the power of our minds. Also, it taught me not to underestimate the power of a child's mind because kids see & experience things too. Eve wanted justice for everyone I feel. I came here because this movie was just one & I wanted to know how others perceived what they saw & thought about the film as well. I'd love to know what the cast themselves think now all these years later.

[@Mickie1198]

In my opinion, the father was grooming the oldest daughter and this is something that men often do. Both him and cicely hold distain for the mother but the child’s disdain is HEAVILY influenced by the fathers behavior. Because the father has the ability to give her affection while the mother is trying to keep the entire family together and failing to look after children due to stress from being cheated on. We never see the father interact with the son, additionally his interactions with eve were to uphold his image, to gaslight her and convince her of something other than the truth. His interactions with cicely were much more intimate, something we should’ve seen him doing with Rozz and not his daughter. He never told cicely to stop waiting up for him. She is doing everything she can to be a “good” version of her mother to hopefully please her father. IT WAS GROOMING. Additionally!!! All we see Louis do is lie, he lied at the beginning of the movie, he lies to eve on the house call, and he lied to mozel about what happened that night. 3 acts of lying.

[@Represent1]

Wow. Who hurt you girl?! 😳

[@4tha99n2oo0z]

@@Represent1 very dumb question. Dumb & inconsiderate. We are all here analyzing a movie. Growup

[@KnowledgeSeeker78491]

@@Represent1 I’m guessing a lying a$$ person who was a groomer

[@jaebyrd4608]

It’s crazy how the father can literally write in his letter that he indulged his daughters affections towards him and people will still gaslight and say the daughter crazy and she wanted her father as though he had no idea she felt that way or no opportunity to put a stop to it.

[@teiashort1451]

@@jaebyrd4608 but does that mean he was grooming her? Or that he molested her?

[@asiaz248]

High key we had no business watching these movies until we became adults

[@marisadiorr9138]

I remember watching this movie thinking that Cissy was acting out but going back and watching it and supposedly it's a deleted scene where the mute uncle seen something going on between Cissy and her father

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

Yes me too! I see everything completely different now we were so young and naive 🤦🏾‍♀️

[@marisadiorr9138]

@@StruggleReviewzTV facts .. when I was younger the whole time I thought that she was literally lying but she was telling the truth 💯

[@zheahra]

Really? I must find that clip.

[@Gigglingsiren]

@@zheahra Watch the director's cut version

[@marklouis1890]

@@marisadiorr9138 exactly. That's the scary part

[@doobiegthamc6828]

Fun fact if I remember correctly 🤔the little brother is actually one of Journee’s brothers in real life . I remember them all being a show back in the day but it wasn’t on TV long

[@caramia4143]

You’re right. I think they are twins actually

[@blackmagicwoman1493]

I am so glad I came across this video!!! Axiom Amnesia did a 2-part video on Eve's Bayou that they released 2 weeks ago. It's exciting to see black content creators doing in-depth analysis on one of my favorite movies! I remember seeing Eve's Bayou the first time on Superstation WGN when it used to be on DirectTV! In high school I would search for articles that delved deeper into what is implied in the movie, but I would only find blogs and nothing of substance. Thank you!

[@brandon_jo_el]

Meagan Good described Cissy as, "she thinks her mother isn't good enough for her dad, and it's her job to step in and save the family. " Their relationship may be inappropriate, but we can't make something happen that didn't happen.

[@brandon_jo_el]

Upon further review, the director's cut had a little extra to it. I'm glad I didn't see that when I was younger.

[@pazyamor1313]

Absolutely 💯. People can really get things misconstrued, even an innocent hi and a smile can be looked at as negative if someone is in a bad head space. This was a beautiful movie and by no means was this about a father sexually abusing his daughter!! Cicely even said it herself " he never hit me" she was upset that she was her father's favorite and tried to take it too far and he struck her. People keep talking about perception yes and then there's the TRUTH. That's why we get the letter at the end, why would they even have that just so we could say " he's lying " that wouldn't make sense. We see how lies could possibly get someone killed. Eve was hurt because we only had her sisters side of the story, and thought that was it because the father got killed. His letter was almost as if he was speaking from the grave. His sister saw Cicely upset and crying and didn't want to see her father so of course she perphaps thought something could've happened. Cicely told her side and peoples minds ran with that, but that's why the letter was there at the end it was the Ah ha moment!! Also why would he suggest her seeing a female gynecologist he was doing anything inappropriate. They put the letter in the Bayou as a way to just let the past be in the past, it was a bond between sisters, because no one really knew what happened but them. Eve was filled with guilt because at her young age she really felt like she killed her father. The ending when Mozelle tells Eve, your "father said he still owes you that dance" it was a sweet reassurance that her father loved her, because she felt so bad.

[@maxdondada]

Agreed

[@puddincup9879]

I scrolled so long to see this comment!!!!!!!

[@ifea.8329]

I remember as a child literally forcing myself to not believe the actual truth of the movie

[@Shay_TheUnpopularOpinion_]

Can we just talk about how aesthetically pleasing this movie is? Everyone in this movie is beautiful , the outfits , the houses and the town. The acting was spectacular! The way I see it is that Cicely needed her father there and wanted so badly to give him what she felt her mother was not giving. She was very confused and Louis never corrected her on that, so he was very guilty with that aspect but I do not think he was grooming or molesting her. In his letter to Mozelle he explained how it tore him up inside that Cicely kissed him.

[@zheahra]

You are the MVP of reviews in these YT streets. I'm still trying to process this storyline. I didn't understand why her period would keep her in the bathroom (in the tub) for hours. Her mother never went upstairs to see what was gong in with Cicely. Roz was there all of the time. She only knew about the drunken incident? You're right. I'll have to watch again.

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

Please do it’s an experience is you haven’t seen it in a while! I’m glad I went back 😊

[@papi_manny]

Okay so what if auntie wrote the letter ? Because why would Louis write it and just have it in his things ? What was the plan? He said he didn't want no one to see it, yet put it in the most obvious place. Also, the relationship between him and his oldest daughter definitely seemed groomed and I think Cisely was here for all the attention and definitely thought she was taking her mom's place. It is clear that she loved her dad and she felt emotionally responsible for him, but then at some point she felt sexually responsible. There is a part where she tells Eve " he was going to divorce us". When I heard that I was like "what do you mean us?" She blamed her mom for wayyyy to much. But it is easier to take frustration out on the parent that is home. This situation was sooo complex with so many layers. Especially with Louis playing into his daughters attraction to him and I think after a while they were both convinced they wanted to cross the line fully. And when they did, it became apparent that they had to stop. I do think he raped her, I think that this showed the comfort that people sometimes have. R@pe is not always aggressive, forceful. Sometimes it looks comfortable and compliant. And that's why it is sometimes hard to know if you have been assaulted or not. I try to remember that Cisely was only 14 so there was probably no thought process on what was "supposed" to happen next. But the depression, character change, mood swings, the lack of appetite was deeper than the period. That's what I think. Thank you for this awesome in depth review. I loved it

[@jaebyrd4608]

No to mention he suggested she see a woman doctor after learning she got her period which makes you wonder if he was concerned about something else because why go to the doctor for a period? He is doctor he knows that’s dumb so why suggest it unless he was concerned about something more? Because her having her period means she could get pregnant so??

[@ratdog6317]

@@jaebyrd4608 exactly, a normal regular period isn't anything to be going to the doctors office over and he would know that being a medical professional himself

[@teiashort1451]

But can’t those same responses come from someone who is broken hearted? First her mother told her that she no longer could hold the position she has held with her father. But her father rejected her and her feelings were hurt.

[@zsmith7590]

Well said

[@Just_Liv]

Geeeeeeshhhhhh and being “sent away” could have good and well been a pregnancyyyyy 😮 because his wife said he knew ho to “fix things’

[@SunflowersRoses47]

The different perspectives of this film is giving me life. The deepest movies we watched as children 😩❤️

[@HeyitsBri_]

The movie is set up so that the audience is meant to view everything through Eve’s eyes and how she navigates difficult issues like love, infidelity, empathy, and mental illness as a child coming of age. She has to deal with not seeing her father as a hero and seeing him to be a very flawed man and the effects his infidelity has in her family, mainly her mother. She also is introduced to the navigation required to understand that people have ulterior motives, how people use each other, and she’s left with dealing with Cisely using her at the end. We do get a step from behind Eve to see Cisely clearly has what we know as an Oedipus Complex where she is not only romantically in love with her own father but obsessed. Obsessed to the point that she creates different stories to tell Eve to live in her delusion. The whole kissing scene was her turning the tables in him so that she doesn’t have to face being rejected by her true love.

[@beebeetee2926]

Bingo, this was my take on it, Ciciley had an Oedipus Rex complex. That admiration for her father and longing for his attention (being that he was absent from the home a good amount of the time) made her overstep boundaries. The slap he gave Ciciley and the look of shock and slight disgust, makes me think he didn't molest her. Ciciley came on to him in an attempt to keep him home. She knows what he does with those women and she put herself in that place (overstepping boundaries). Kind of like I know what you like, I know what will keep you home. She resented her mom because she felt her mom was not doing her "job" to keep her dad home.

[@keiajones5278]

Agreed

[@reisseweaise4548]

Broke it down!! Yes to everything you wrote👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾 it happens more than we know

[@deljean]

@@beebeetee2926 exactly

[@sharikadefreitas4625]

I'm going to , cough, be the annoying person who points out it's called an Electra Complex for daughters. Oedipal complexes refer to sons and mothers. That being said, not sure I'd agree this perfectly fits Cissy bc grooming was involved.

[@marshiebo]

I watched this movie for the first time today because of this review. The combination of 1. Mozelle, the Aunt, touching Eve's hand and us hearing the echo of a scream before the Aunt pulled her hands away in fright. 2. Plus to later find a letter from the father addressed to the Aunt regarding her accusation of abuse sealed it for me. He raped her.

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

This is such a divisive movie so many people feel like he didn’t. Of course I’ve always thought he did also.

[@yasmeenreaves]

another perspective, the aunt only saw what Eve saw. and Eve only saw what Cicily made/allowed her to see.

[@jama3997]

@@yasmeenreaves yeah but outside factors kinda confirmed it. She became reclusive and that bit about her sitting in the bathtub for over an hour, really made a bunch pop out. Simple emotional incest wouldn’t have this girl exhibiting genuine behaviors of a (sexually)physically abused person

[@keshellmartin]

The dad was a manipulative person when it came to woman and girls

[@Jay-fv2qo]

In your introduction what you probably meant to say is, "Southern gothic drama". Southern Gothic is a sub-genre of fiction that takes place in the American South. To understand more about it you should read Poe, Faulkner, Tennessee Williams, Capote, Flannery O'Connor, Cormac McCarthy and Carson McCullers. "Southern Gothic serves as my favorite genre because it dares to question the status quo of the old South and examines all stories from all sides. All too many times, the South is looked at as a place still stuck in the '60s and is shut out from meaningful conversations. Black Southerners are the most overlooked, only being seen as slaves or the help when it comes to the portrayal of Black Southern life in film and television. So in response, Black Southern Gothic was born. One of the most popular Black Southern Gothic pieces of work is Kasi Lemmons' Eve's Bayou, a coming of age story about a young girl who deals with her family's dark secrets by using the power of voodoo, another important characteristic of the Southern Gothic aesthetic. It was a moving film for Black girls like me because it proved our stories could be told and that we were far more complex than what others believed. A true Southern Gothic gem. " Tishon Pugh

[@teejourney4880]

Absolutely!!!!!!!!

[@scrubz.n.squatz2495]

Well said ….. i loved your comment very much esp being from New Orleans.

[@CelesteJem]

The movie has absolutely nothing to do with a father having sexual relations with his daughter. The overall theme of the movie entails Southern black culture, the black bourgeoisie family line, and memories and its mystique. Eve inherited the gift of sight from her slave lineage. Cicely and her father’s stories are conflicted because of the unreliability of memory. That’s why Cicely cries out “I don’t know what happened” at the end when Eve tried to read her mind. She doesn’t get a clear picture. It’s about the way our sight betrays us because of the unreliability of memory and perception. Cicely was extremely attached to her father and feared he would leave the family so she tried to show him adoration. Everything unraveled as a result of his infidelity and his oldest daughter’s desire to keep her father from divorcing them.

[@zerricksinclair8515]

This comment alone make more since then this whole video, her opinion of the father doesn’t match the actual movie. This movie is much more in depth then the father molesting his daughter🙄🙄

[@derickspencejr.6998]

You’re right. This is like a horror movie with black people with two of the cutest girls. I never knew that Cisely was acting like a woman more than a daughter.

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

Yes please go watch it it’s alarming smh

[@pazyamor1313]

People can really get things misconstrued, even an innocent hi and a smile can be looked at as negative if someone is in a bad head space. This was a beautiful movie and by no means was this about a father sexually abusing his daughter!! Cicely even said it herself " he never hit me" she was upset that she was her father's favorite and tried to take it too far and he struck her. People keep talking about perception yes and then there's the TRUTH. That's why we get the letter at the end, why would they even have that just so we could say " he's lying " that wouldn't make sense. We see how lies could possibly get someone killed. Eve was hurt because we only had her sisters side of the story, and thought that was it because the father got killed. His letter was almost as if he was speaking from the grave. His sister saw Cicely upset and crying and didn't want to see her father so of course she perphaps thought something could've happened. Cicely told her side and peoples minds ran with that, but that's why the letter was there at the end it was the Ah ha moment!! Also why would he suggest her seeing a female gynecologist he was doing anything inappropriate. They put the letter in the Bayou as a way to just let the past be in the past, it was a bond between sisters, because no one really knew what happened but them. Eve was filled with guilt because at her young age she really felt like she killed her father. The ending when Mozelle tells Eve, your "father said he still owes you that dance" it was a sweet reassurance that her father loved her, because she felt so bad.

[@boogratitude]

Exactly

[@ajackson9473]

People lie to protect themselves - victims and predators. Why would the sister, who was upset when she THOUGHT her sister was lying, react lovingly after her vision which showed the truth? Who reacts to a confirmation that someone lied like that? Also, the letter itself sounds fake as hell. He also said that his weakness is women who see him as a hero. His daughter probably saw him as a hero. 1 out of 10 children will be victims of sexual abuse before they are 18. Most by people they know and trust, which includes family.

[@aj-cf9xr]

If you watched the movie . The last vision cesiley shared.with her sister has was scattered and all she remembered was being struck down she did not remember the actual kiss… yall just perpetuate your child hood traumas in order to create a false narrative . Womanizer / cheater yes but pedo , i didnt get that .

[@blah5528]

You are so wrong. The director her self said it was about sexual assault.

[@patbax7805]

I'm going to have re-watch this movie. As I remember, Megan Good's character lied about the molestation because she was angry at him.

[@driafibromyalgiafighter9342]

Im actually watching this as im writing this. I dont think the father molested the daughter. I do think some boundaries were crossed when it comes to how the daughter felt about her Dad. He is guilty of not checking her behavior from the start, the waiting up late at night, massaging his shoulders, etc. And when it escalated with that kiss that night, thats when he finally saw that things were getting out of control. The letter that he wrote Mozelle explains it perfectly. I get why some would think he abused her from the blood in her clothes, long baths and staying in bed and not speaking...but when someone start their periods it can be a weird and confusing time. You could be tired and want to be left alone, feelings of being unclean leading to long showers/baths, etc. I just think she had some confusion with her womanhood starting and the way her father treated her and what she may have felt was her most vulnerable moment....

[@potofgoldseeker4248]

This is definitely Gothic Horror similar to V.C. Andrews' books. This genre normally involves family-centered trauma, a large house, and a scary elder(Elzora's character).

[@KeishaCharmaine]

This is one of my favorite movies. I watch it often. This is a great review although my opinion differs from yours. Your take is more interesting though! I didn’t think the dad molested Cecily. I think she got her period and her hormonal changes made her act out. In books and movies, usually journals/diaries/letters reveal the truth. His journal said that he didn’t intentionally hurt her but he admits to accidentally blurring the lines between father and daughter. He wanted Cecily’s praise, the first and favorite child, just like he wanted the praise of the community. He was a cheater but I don’t believe he was a molester. I’ll do some research to see what the writer intended. It’s all in all an amazing drama with creepy Louisiana elements. Horror is a big reach though 😂😂😂

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

Thank you for watching this story is one that could be interpreted many ways.

[@pazyamor1313]

Absolutely 💯. People can really get things misconstrued, even an innocent hi and a smile can be looked at as negative if someone is in a bad head space. This was a beautiful movie and by no means was this about a father sexually abusing his daughter!! Cicely even said it herself " he never hit me" she was upset that she was her father's favorite and tried to take it too far and he struck her. People keep talking about perception yes and then there's the TRUTH. That's why we get the letter at the end, why would they even have that just so we could say " he's lying " that wouldn't make sense. We see how lies could possibly get someone killed. Eve was hurt because we only had her sisters side of the story, and thought that was it because the father got killed. His letter was almost as if he was speaking from the grave. His sister saw Cicely upset and crying and didn't want to see her father so of course she perphaps thought something could've happened. Cicely told her side and peoples minds ran with that, but that's why the letter was there at the end it was the Ah ha moment!! Also why would he suggest her seeing a female gynecologist he was doing anything inappropriate. They put the letter in the Bayou as a way to just let the past be in the past, it was a bond between sisters, because no one really knew what happened but them. Eve was filled with guilt because at her young age she really felt like she killed her father. The ending when Mozelle tells Eve, your "father said he still owes you that dance" it was a sweet reassurance that her father loved her, because she felt so bad.

[@American_negroid_woman]

No. He gave molester vibes. We all "know" a molester in the family and creates every excuse to pretend we don't know to not have any child around them.

[@redrebel39]

I don’t think the father molested his daughter either. The daughter was heart broken because her father rejected her. The daughter viewed her mother as competition. It is very uncomfortable to watch Sissy. With this movie I always remember Sissy confronting her mother about not pleasing or keeping her father satisfied.

[@TheInnerSanctuary]

Thank you for this video. This movie has lived rent free in my head since 97

[@ContextReallyMatters]

This is one of those movies that I've never really watched straight through. I always caught bits and pieces of it. It sounds interesting though. I'm going to have to revisit this one and watch it from start to finish. Great review and those yellow frames are fresh👓

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

Thank you 😊

[@jasper1949]

@@StruggleReviewzTV I don’t believe father was grooming his oldest cause he was running around smashing many women why would he have to do that, that don’t make sense the ending confession letter completely kill that thought with him slapping her for trying to kiss him like a grown woman and the look she gave ... I’m just saying thinking out loud...

[@DawnofA]

I don’t think it was grooming. I do think he emotionally favored her but I think she had an Electra complex. She fell innocently in love with her dad and was competing with her mother. She even cut her hair to look more like her. I don’t think the father was grooming her to molest her but he def favored her the most and contributed to the issues between her and the mother.

[@NiyahNy]

The letter was to Mozelle his sister. There was a scene in the movie where Eve asked Mozelle how to kill someone with voodoo. When Mozelle asked Eve to hold her hands she seen what happened with Cicily and her brother. But she couldn’t admit that to Eve so she played it off but she approached her brother and accused him of abuse. This is why he wrote the letter. If I’m being honest I don’t really know what happened. I never thought the father abused her but after rewatching at the end Eve clearly sees something happened that speaks to Cicilys truth.

[@Kreezword913]

Your introduction is everything!! I love Curtis Mayfield!! Give me your love is my favorite song by him❤️❤️

[@CassieCas0106]

I’m so excited you did this!! This is one of my favorites! I just watched it last night.

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

Thank you I hope you enjoy the video I look forward to your thoughts!

[@alwa6954]

I don't see it that way. Cicely had expressed her fear that her mother would drive her father away by confronting him about his affairs. She also knew how much he liked and needed the affections of women. I think her attempts to look older and become sexual with her father was an attempt to keep him home by giving him what he was always leaving the house to find. It's not uncommon and even normal for young girls to compete with their mothers for their father's affections. And it is not unusual for fathers to have repressed sexual feelings about their maturing daughters which may give rise to playful flirting or quasi-sexual play as the daughter herself seeks this and responds to it and the physical similarities of daughter and mother when she was young at the time the father first became attracted to her can help to promote these feelings which, however, do not normally result in gratification of the repressed feelings. It can also lead to counter-incest: the father creating distance between himself and his maturing daughter to ward off such feelings or out of guilt or resentment towards her for being the cause of them. These family sexual dynamics I think can explain what we see in the film but the cause of them becoming realized I believe arose out of Cicely's attempt to keep her father home. I think circumstances indicate this was a one-time incident and not part of a series of overt sexual encounters between them. It is certainly possible that he at first responded sexually to her kiss before being repulsed by the incest taboo and striking her out of fear and resentment. This would seem like the ultimate rejection and humiliation to her which is why she could not bare to have her father look at her while he does not appear to feel the same embarrassment or feeling of responsibility. Cicely's initial lie to her sister was therefore an attempt to save face and hide her rejection and embarrassment. When confronted by her sister as a liar she changes her story and recants to some extent but only so far as to say she doesn't know what happened. She still can't admit the truth though she's able at least to admit, tacitly, that her earlier story was not true.

[@ristobenjie]

If he in fact did not get sexual with her, which I don't believe he actually did, none of her feelings justify the story which led the younger sister, who was a secondary school aged child, to insert herself into adult situations such that she directly set up the the occasion which led to her father's murder. While his actions with his wife were unsavory as far as adultery, it's a stretch to put a child in the position where she chooses to embody some type of karma/retribution. Cicely's fears of him leaving the wife may not have been realized since he and Ann Nicole Carson's character seemed to enjoy being in the zone of being married to other people while cheating on them, but may not have had enough of a real connection to each other to actually become a couple.

[@fslayer1290]

I’ve thought the same for years.

[@tosha50000]

@Alwa 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾🤌🏾🤌🏾🤌🏾 Well put and I agree with you fully. I didn't think there was a case of grooming here at all, but a case of blurred lines. Your breakdown was thorough and clear as glass hun. Thanks for adding that here ☺️

[@decodedxnova2657]

That’s extremely unusual fathers lusting after their daughters pew 🤮

[@jaebyrd4608]

@@tosha50000blurred lines and grooming are the same thing. Not everyone that is groomed is assaulted but the point of grooming is to blur the lines so the child associates the interaction as normal instead of being afraid or repulsed. It’s to allow the child to be comfortable or to believe the desire the interactions which is why grooming is so insidious because it allows the abuser to put blame on the child as being a confused child when things come to light without admitting they intentionally caused the child’s confusion

[@renaissancewoman100]

The way Cecily's love for her dad did morph into something sick. Also Cecily had mental issues no doubt brought on by her family. As the oldest she knew her daddy was no good. Remember when Eve saw their dad and Mattie how Cecily tried to cover it up? She told Eve that what she thought she saw wasn't true. She did blame their mom for his infidelity. Somehow I guess she thought she could take her mom's place and he would stay at home. It is very common for children to blame their mothers for their no good daddy's behavior. It usually doesn't lead to this. Usually it's an intense hatred of the mom and all women. It's always good to learn and prevent generations of pain. However it's getting to the point of the little boy who cried wolf. Black people honestly aren't use to a father daughter dynamic due to most not being in the home. This was sick but not grooming. Also, let's stop blaming other women for men's bad behavior if they don't say anything about it. Lynn Whitfield's character knew Everything her husband was doing but wouldn't leave. I have told women about my brother and they still didn't leave. Why waste your breath. Some black women are going to stay no matter what.

[@nicolesherman8974]

So, this was my first time watching this movie and although it’s a masterpiece (the cinematography was top notch), I found parts of the movie disturbing. This movie showcased what emotional incest is like. Louis definitely was treating Cisley like a romantic partner rather than a daughter. Seemed like Louis ignored/neglected the needs of Cisley since he brainwashed her to be almost like a “wife”, carrying wife like duties.

[@teiashort1451]

Can you point out how he brain washed her. I am really trying to see this. 😳

[@justme8201]

I got your name from Ashley Says so. ❤️ I love how you tell the story and give us angles of the father and daughter situation. What made me subscribe was the Boomerang episode 🤦🏾‍♀️🤣 so hilarious! You really have a thing with impressions. Thank you ❤️

[@melanatedj9660]

Your hair is beautiful, also great breakdown.

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

Thank You ! ❤️

[@janine2317]

I've watched this movie multiple times and could never put my finger on the eeriness of it‼️‼️Thank u so much for bringing up this point. I was always enthralled by this movie and it does have a creepiness to it💯💯

[@Bossyglossy1]

Great job Sis…So much juice and a great deep dive🔥🔥🔥

[@stillblu]

We need more movies like this and thank you for the commentary

[@sheraz7997]

This movie scared the hell out of me as a kid and also made me very aware and scared of incest

[@taopanda98]

I actuallly came across this movie because I am fascinated by different witchcraft from all over the world. I am Mexican, and my roommate in college was a Black girl from Louisiana. She used to tell me stories about Southern culture . It was fascinating to hear her family's stories in Creole culture. I am starting to realize that Southern culture is vast from the comments and the movie. I will definitely look more to Southern gothic horror. I find the movie absolutely delightful in the costuming, colour pallete, the house, and the landscapes of the Bayou. I really love the director Miss Kasi Lemmons' preference for period movies. However, going back to Eve's Bayou, I absolutely felt very uncomfortable for Cisely, because she was going through confusion, coming of age, and also a child that must be protected. :c My heart when for her, I honestly don't know what is the truth and I think this movie teaches us that layer. Eve reminded me so much of myself as a kid. I am glad her aunt Mozelle was trying her best to protect Eve. :( Anyways great review! a new sub from me (:

[@jahmarkusrabb9975]

This is one of my favorite movies. I like how it contained elements of drama and horor. I like the spiritual elements as well. The acting was superb especially from the child actors. This movie should have won many awards.

[@ChelseaStonerrTV]

I knew I wasn’t crazy. He was sick. But it happened a lot in black families in the south. A lot is swept under the rug frfr

[@Jtzist]

The daughter's story had 2 kisses. The father's story had 2 kisses but the vision had one kiss. Something happened and Tomy knows and maybe even Eve.

[@shanjanee]

Unlike another commenter, I love your intros! That’s what makes your channel unique and just adds to the review! Amazing video as always!

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

Thank you so much 😊 they are here to stay!

[@MsFeliciaG]

Wow I’m so proud to have been a part of Self Made. Even my tiny part what an honour.

[@edizzle4shizz]

Thanks for breaking it down. After 25 years.... I was confused. Great review 👍🏾❤

[@frowhatitsworth]

Cicely was the only child that looked like a combination of her parents. 🤨 This family had secrets, chile…

[@notapplicable687]

Erm what the two younger siblings literally got their ginger hair from the fathers side. Are you trying to imply they had different fathers from cicely? That would make no sense if anything cicely was the one that had a different father she resembled her mom only with dark features and looked nothing like the Baptise family.

[@ShalerLibraryTelevision]

Thank you SO much for this. This is one of the best movies ever made. I remember seeing it in the theater- THREE TIMES- I have it on DVD and digital download and I never saw so much of what you shared!!! I can’t wait to check out your other videos! Thank you! Brilliant commentary!

[@ShalerLibraryTelevision]

Also- the soundtrack is INCREDIBLE! I have it on CD ! Hard to find but GET IT if you can!!

[@kmarcol1]

Judging from the comments a lot of this is projection of lack of knowing what a healthy father/daughter dynamic looks like, trauma, unhealthy attachment styles and family dysfunction. It's quite tragic actually. Oh and I'm a therapist before anyone tries to @ me

[@ReyHugoTelevision614]

She wasn't blind to her brother, she said they both were the same.

[@Hottool365]

Cicely had a crush on her dad. He encouraged and spoiled her. She acted way too mature and it was all for her daddy. When they kissed, that may have broken Cicely’s spell. She realized that she was his daughter and those feelings were wrong and disgusting. I like to think that he also realized at that moment that he had gone too far by indulging her. I tend to believe that he slapped her because he was disgusted too and knew he had to check that. He didn’t really need to write that letter to his sister. If he had those inappropriate feelings he would have kept that whole incident between him and his daughter. I think she felt disgusted in herself after the incident and that’s why she didn’t want to be around her father. She knew a line had been crossed and didn’t want to face anyone in the family. I believe she lied to Eve because she couldn’t admit her own wrongdoing.

[@blah5528]

She was a child. He played with her emotions and groomed her! If you watch the directors cut you’ll see her and her father actually did have an inappropriate relationship and he wanted the kiss. Even without the directors cut I don’t understand how people are saying “her wrong doing” she was a kid and he enjoyed her unchecked boundaries. Eve said he only danced with cicely, he didn’t allow his mother to threaten cicely but she could threaten other kids. Cicely would make his drinks after work and bring him his paper and visited his office. This man knew exactly what he was doing. Pure grooming

[@deljean]

Yep

[@yumikumi2]

No, Louis was the parent, a neglectful parent. I see in this movie that there were too many crossed and mixed signals and unchecked and unexplained boundaries, this is what happened when there's no parental guidance and you just leave it to chance that the children know everything and avoid the serious talks you need to have with them. Louis was too busy running around with women, and in front of his wife and children, he didn't see what he was doing to his children, he didn't want to have the much-needed, important conversations with his family, and he didn't realize that his children, especially Cicely, wanted his approval so bad that they went to great lengths to do so, Eve with her constant need for attention, and Cicely with an Elektra Complex caused from the constant praise for the inappropriate, wrong behaviors. Children need guidance and care, not just instructions to be obedient, unquestioned obedience, desperate acceptance, and admiration at all costs for that obedience will cause your children to compete for their parent's love in all the wrong ways. That is the message I got from the movie.

[@Hottool365]

@@yumikumi2 I completely agree with you about his parenting. But when it comes to that kiss incident. He didn’t have to write that letter to his sister. He could have kept that to himself. He felt guilty because he knew that he wasn’t a good husband or parent.

[@yumikumi2]

@@Hottool365 I agree too, Louis wasn't a monster or an evil guy, he was a bad parent and husband. I also believe that Voo Doo didn't kill Louis, it was his reckless actions that killed him. Louis being a cheater was bad enough, but he was so egotistical he went so far as to fool around with his friend's wife, and that's why he got shot up, not some stupid magic spell.

[@jama3997]

Louis is used to manipulating perspective and telling people what they did or didn’t see, and he’s obviously done it to Cecily bc her first thought to protect her sister from what she saw was to do it to Eve. Cecily wasn’t crying over no damn period. The kids have a doctor father and are involved in adult situations with no correction all the time. Their grandmother even speaks on it. Why would she be worried about a period. There is no coincidence in her bleeding after a sexually charged inappropriate interaction between her and her father. My guess is that was the first night the PHYSICAL physical stuff happened and that’s why she was so traumatized. And Mozelle didn’t make it any better threatening to kill Eve. She takes up for Louis no matter what he does. Her first thought upon hearing that her niece saw that, wasn’t to console her and let her know that she shouldn’t have to be subjected to something like that, but to threaten to end her life. Cecily also not being able to remember everything clearly but Eve seeing something convincing enough to believe her sister, told me enough. With what we see, Mozelle and Eve see the truth with their gift, regardless of what is told to them. Eve saw the truth and didn’t blame Cecily (who’s obviously wanting to divert blame to herself after what happened). Cecily does what her father taught her. Trick herself into believing that what happened, wasn’t what happened.

[@shekwaga]

I was in my mid 20s when this came out and I missed the intestinal undercurrent. But I do think we are more aware of what grooming looks like over the past 20 years that it looks so obvious now.

[@AnykoTheDon]

I have this movie on DVD... The more i watch the more i realize how cursed and blessed this family was. You live in a house that has 4 bathrooms and a minimum of 5 bedrooms surrounded by at least 2 acres of land with a swamp, yet you still have to worry about predatory behaviors within the family, marital infidelity, being treated as an outcast by community, being ignored or abused by family. Now getting to the most controversial part. I truly believe that Cicely's story is true, he slapped the shyt out of her after the second kiss. I also believe Louis story that he wrote to Moiselle, she went in for the second kiss and his weird drunk ass was about to go further then realized it was his daughter and slapped the shyt out of her. No one is right but the movie is perfect in getting us to interpret wtf happend the night of the storm. Ironically i am siding with Mr. Monroe... Not another word Louis, you speak to her and ya dead!!!! 😂😂 Am i horrible for thinking it should've been Maddie too?

[@krazy_krystle1]

She even went out and got her hair done just like her mother’s before she came on to him. She planned that she was gonna try him but he was the reason that she was confused.

[@cajunfire6290]

Bonjour Mademoiselle! showing love from Louisiana great vid!😊

[@ShantellJ]

Thank you. I’m about to rewatch and I’ll come back and comment

[@colettemallory3813]

Great review. I have to admit that for years I've closed my eyes to so many things that made me uncomfortable about this film. I believe you are right about all your observations and assertions. Thank you for sharing this.

[@kenyak2959]

Even one part when he picked journee up Cecily had a jealous disgusted look on her face.

[@cupcakes7015]

Right 10/28/2022

[@queenscarlettpimpsunkiss..5537]

Do you think he intentionally grown his daughter or do you think that his love for his daughter combined with his socialization as a man, especially during those time periods, created this warped type of emotionally incestuous dynamic.

[@tinaberry7215]

You are to the point I could listen to you all day thank you

[@StruggleReviewzTV]

No Thank You!!! ❤️💕