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Which Way Is Up?

Name: Which Way Is Up?
Director: Michael Schultz
Released: 1977
Duration: 94 min

Representation Score

5.8/10

Fair

1977

Director

Michael Schultz

Runtime

94 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

Which Way Is Up? stands as a significant piece of socially conscious cinema that centers the Black experience. By moving from rural labor to urban organizing, the film uses its setting to critique systemic socioeconomic structures and capitalist hierarchies. The film's strength lies in its refusal to adhere to respectability politics. Instead, it offers a multi-dimensional portrayal of underrepresented communities navigating instability, specifically through the subversion of traditional religious and familial roles. While the film lacks LGBTQ+ or disability-focused narratives, its high marks in racial ability to act and its nuanced approach to gendered power dynamics make it a progressive work for its era.

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Category Breakdown

Does Which Way Is Up? have LGBTQ+ representation?

Minimal

The film focuses on heterosexual relationships, with no visible presence of LGBTQ+ identities or narratives that question the assumption that everyone is straight or cisgender. There are no characters or themes that challenge the assumption that everyone is straight or cisgender.

How does Which Way Is Up? portray gender?

Good

The story disrupts traditional patriarchal hierarchies by highlighting the struggles of women like Annie Mae and Vanetta. It subverts the stable patriarch cliché by depicting male characters through lenses of obsession or reactivity.

How racially and ethnically diverse is Which Way Is Up??

Excellent

This work features an almost entirely Black cast, centering the Black experience in both rural and urban settings. It avoids including someone from a minority group without giving them real depth by making Black protagonists the primary drivers of the plot.

How does Which Way Is Up? represent religion and culture?

Excellent

The narrative critiques capitalist hierarchies through labor exploitation and union organizing. It also deconstructs the idealized family unit and portrays religious figures as sources of instability rather than moral anchors.

Does Which Way Is Up? include disability representation?

Minimal

There is no significant evidence regarding the portrayal of physical or neurodivergent disabilities within the narrative.

Present on Screen

Centering the Black experience in both rural and urban environments without relying on including someone from a minority group without giving them real depth.
Subverting traditional patriarchal clichés by highlighting the ability to act and struggles of female characters.
Providing a sophisticated critique of capitalist hierarchies and socioeconomic exploitation through labor themes.

Limited or Absent

The narrative lacks representation of LGBTQ+ identities or perspectives that question the assumption that everyone is straight or cisgender.
There is no discernible focus on characters with physical or neurodivergent disabilities.

Official Synopsis

Orange picker Leroy Jones inadvertently becomes a union leader and is forced out of town, leaving behind his sex-obsessed father, Rufus, and timid spouse, Annie Mae. He heads for Los Angeles, where he falls for union organizer Vanetta. Annie Mae seeks solace from local preacher Lenox Thomas, who eventually impregnates her. When Leroy catches wind, he heads home for a showdown with Lenox.

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