The first feature film for Terrance Mcleod, A Season for Love plays through the trajectory of a romantic relationship for a pair of Black Zoomers. Malik (Torri Tillman) is a nascent filmmaker working on his first feature film. Sam (Danielle Renee Houston) is a bookish introvert and a doctor who would much prefer to stay at home reading. From an awkward first meeting at a club to a nice walk to their first dinner date, a relationship blossoms between Malik and Sam. There is a goofy tenderness that resonates through Tillman and Houston’s interactions. They have a clear chemistry, and their common bond of nerdiness is most endearing. Gentle Reader, as I watched A Season for Love, I was hooked on this coupling.
A Season for Love takes place in Charlotte, NC. I have not been to Charlotte personally. However, through the footage, Mcleod captures of his hometown, I got a real sense of the scale of the town. Charlotte is of a similar size to Indianapolis and some other mid-sized cities. A vibrant downtown area is braced by suburbs where the denizens live. I was taken by the contrast between heavily developed and urbane downtown and tree-lined and quiet suburbs. Charlotte is a delightful town reminiscent of the mid-sized towns I have occupied for much of my life. A genteel, relaxed vibe exists in such a place.
“…plays through the trajectory of a romantic relationship for a pair of Black Zoomers…”
Mcleod is taking a very DIY approach to this film. He has written, directed, shot, and edited A Season for Love. You can tell from the majority Black cast to the lush, forested backdrops of Suburban Charlotte that Mcleod has not just prepared a sweet and touching romance, but he has also presented us spectators with a front-row seat to the inner workings of both his film craft and imaginative drives. There is a meditation most of the way through Act 1 concerning the need to generate substantive Black art that resonates.
Over the course of A Season for Love, we watch Sam and Malik attempt to communicate. One of the observations of the young people I have taken great note of is their diminishing ability to communicate properly. Often, they discourse in a series of ideas that may or may not interact effectively. That or one member of the couple is given to sullen moods and cannot have their state of mind positively impacted by the other member of the relationship.
In every film that features a relationship, there are external factors that complicate the relationship and make the ability to stay together. For Sam, that factor is her father, who is also a medical professional and wishes to have his daughter relocate and join his practice as a junior doctor. For Malik, it’s his ambition to join his heroes Fuqua, Lee, etc. as one of the next great Black filmmakers. However, his desire to tell stories of Black people that matter runs headlong into the need to make money. There’s a scene where Malik meets with his distributor. The cold glass of water his distributor (Samuel Roberts) douses on his intention to sell it to streaming is quite demoralizing.
A Season for Love is a delightful, substantive romance of two young Black people. It has a sweet, sentimental nature. Seek out this slice of life if you want a film concerning young Blacks that doesn’t feature hustlers or street gangs.
"…a delightful, substantive romance..."
