STRIPPERS, PSYCHE, SOUL: Film writer Paris Sewell on Katori Hall's dynamite P-VALLEY

I finally decided to watch P-Valley after seeing the trailer for the upcoming movie Zola (I am so excited for that movie, you don’t understand). Something about content involving strippers is just *chef’s kiss*. I think the reason why I love them is because they represent who I want to be: confident, strong, talented and beautiful.

This show revolves around stripper culture. The main character, “Autumn Night” becomes a stripper to earn wages. She is down on her luck, as she is first seen beat up and stolen luggage in her hand. She enters a stripper contest to earn $50, which to her is like a thousand. Her glow up was real; she transformed to looking from a homeless woman to a baddie. I am still manifesting this. Because she is diagnosed with main character syndrome, she won the contest. I thought her dance was a little weak, but hey, she’s still cute and she got her money. 

I enjoyed the opening scene. Though it looked depressing, it alluded to what we could expect regarding Autumn’s current life. Muddy waters drowned various personal belongings as it signaled a flood or a hurricane. It is filled with melancholic feelings of hopelessness and emptiness. The neighborhood looked like it belonged in the ghetto, which makes sense given the premise of the show.

This show gives us a look at stripper culture: the competitiveness amongst the girls, along with the giving their all to a performance. Whilst it looks pretty on the outside, the show displayed some damaging mindsets and attitudes such as misogyny. I noticed the sign outside the club said “men: $20 bitches: $30”. I understand that it’s rapper culture to refer to women as bitches, but couldn’t it be equal at least? If you’re going to call women bitches, why couldn’t the men be called like “ballers” or something? Along with that, everyone goes to a strip club to see strippers so why are they the most disrespected? Something else I didn’t like is the critiquing of women’s bodies. As someone who is struggling with body image issues, I don’t like seeing that.

Uncle Clifford (the club owner) offers to buy Autumn a new pair of boobs and butt. I thought her body looked fine, but this is what I mean. It is reinforcing beauty standards that a butt needs to be huge, or boobs need to be shapely. But that is a conversation for another day as it can easily turn into a rant. 

My favorite character is Mercedes. She is the lead dancer of the show. Though she is catty and rude to Autumn, I love how strong and determined she is. There is a reason why she is the main star of the club. I want to be her. 

This show is dramatic and intriguing. It invites you in with the flashy lights and hustler lifestyle. However, it is raw and heartbreaking as we get an inside look at the some of the girl’s private lives and their daily struggles.

I will continue to watch more. I am so glad it got renewed because I want more. I will give it an 8.9/10. 

Written by film critic & writer Paris Sewell. Paris posts film reviews and pop culture appreciations on Instagram @parishatesyouxo and Twitter @blkspicegurl. Thank you so much for reading.