THE 40 YEAR OLD VERSION (2020)

Written & Directed by Radha Blank



Available to stream now on Netflix



All artists just want to be able to express themselves and share their creativity to the world. Due to talent, circumstances and a lot of luck, some people are fortunate enough to have their gifts noticed, appreciated and rewarded by a large audience. But there are others, despite their fierce determination and debatable skills, that are not as fortunate while spending many years struggling for someone to take notice and give them a chance.

Writer/director Radha Blank has cleverly built her debut feature film, "The 40 Year old Version" around her own experiences as an artist struggling for many years to be noticed, creating a comedy that is razor-sharp, heartfelt and a fitting showcase for a gifted emerging filmmaker.

Blank, feeling no need to be coy, stars as Radha, a New York playwright who is struggling to get her career off the ground. Once named one of the "Most Promising 30 Under 30" a number of years ago, she is now rapidly approaching forty with no real prospects in sight. Archie (Peter Y. Kim), Radha's sassy, gay friend since childhood is also her agent and one of her biggest supporters . He's pressuring her to meet with Josh Whitman (Reed Birney), a theater producer, to discuss getting behind her play. While Whitman claims to love her work and wants to produce it, he has few suggestions on ways to  improve her play. Radha's reaction is unexpected (and a little violent), ending with her hands tightly around his throat.

Realizing that might not have been a great move to help her career yet it does lead Radha down a path to embarking on a new and unlikely career. No longer wanting to wait for approval from the gatekeepers nor make her work easier for white people to digest, she wants to express herself with an authentic voice through rap and hip-hop. Radha begins her journey on making a mixtape by acquiring some beats from a DJ named D (Oswin Benjamin). She finds ease in spitting out rhymes in an intimate setting yet is far less confident rapping in front of an audience, choking very badly during her first live performance. Quiet and unassuming, D patiently offers Radha words of encouragement and reveals to her the endless possibilities by taking her to see other female performers.

Radha also works with students at a high school to write and put on a play, trying to inspire a future generation for a love of the theater. But like many teenagers today, they are far too distracted with social media and their raging hormones to be that focused on the stage. Archie has managed to convince Whitman to overlook the choking incident (don't ask), with the producer still wanting to work with Radha. And while her dream has been to have her work produced on a theatrical stage, she's unsure if that's what she still wants to do under such oppressive artistic conditions.

On the surface, "The 40 Year Old Version" may not appear to be a particularly fresh idea for a comedy. Yet Blank delivers a fresh perspective on the creative process, in front of and behind the camera, dealing with race, gender and age in ways that are rarely seen or considered. With an impressive ability to indicate high production values from a small budget and visually inventive with crisp black and white cinematography from Eric Branco, Blank's film brings to mind the debut feature of another filmmaker from Brooklyn, Spike Lee. "She's Gotta Have It", Mr. Lee's 1986 comedy, focused on the independent spirit of Nola Darling and her pursuit of relationships and sexuality on her own terms, much like Blank's character and her desire to express herself creatively without compromise or interference. 

Blank spent many years trying to get her career going after discovering theater in college. She acted, did stand-up and wrote many plays (almost all never produced) without ever feeling like she was getting anywhere. A shift began when she wrote a web series about a rapper, RadhaMUS Prime which was loosely based on herself. The filming of the project fell apart after her mother sadly passed away. But Blank managed to keep the idea alive and sometime later the work evolved from a television series to eventually a screenplay. The pain, struggle and hard work would pay off for Blank with her winning the Best Director prize at this year's Sundance Film Festival and earning a production deal with Netflix.

"The 40 Year Old Version" is an accomplished and groundbreaking first film. Blank's wonderful comedy is less about jokes (even though there are some very funny ones here) and more about finding dark humor in the odd and challenging moments an African-American woman of a certain age faces during her journey of self-acceptance and creative fulfillment. Anyone who has tried to make their dreams come true yet just can't quite get there, whether due to considerable obstacles or self-sabotage, will be able to relate to this story, finding a little hope and some inspiration. This film delivers a simple yet powerful message that honest work will always lead to good work.