The Order of Myths (2008)

Director:

Margaret Brown

Writer:

Margaret Brown (writer)

Genre:

Documentary

Plot:

In 2007 Mobile, Alabama, Mardi Gras is celebrated... and complicated. Following a cast of characters, parades, and parties across an enduring color line, we see that beneath the surface of pageantry lies something else altogether. |

Awards:

1 nomination

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

a very intriguing look into a still segregated world

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

another great documentary without narration, this one by Margaret brown. this deals with the still-segregated Mardi Gras celebrations in Mobile, Alabama. this is the birthplace of Mardi Gras in the u.s., with the first party happening 15 years before New Orleans was even a city.

with equal coverage of both the MCA (the white group) and the MAMGA (the black group), brown guides us through the preparation, the racial tensions and the celebration of the 2007 Mardi Gras. absolutely everything is separate in the celebration, from two royal courts, to two dances to two parades. it feels like the Jim Crow laws have not left Mobile, Alabama.

this year, however, the MCA court allowed (invited?) the MAMGA king and queen to attend their coronation, and the MCA king and queen attended the MAMGA's dance. it's up to the audience to decide whether the camera's presence influenced this new integration and whether or not it will continue, but for the most part it seemed natural.

through a series of events, however, it is revealed that the MCA (remember, the white group) queen's relatives brought the last slave ship to the u.s. as a bet, because it was post-civil war. after he didn't come back to the ship, the first mate set fire to the ship. but the slaves escaped into the forest nearby and formed a small town called Africa town. turns out, the MAMGA (remember, the black group) queen is a direct descendant of one of those slaves. so, even more racial tension. also, the state of Alabama officially apologizes for its involvement in slavery shortly before Mardi Gras. more racial tension brought to the surface.

then, several white people make the claim that nobody wants integration, even going so far as to say they want integration, and the black community are the ones who want segregation. however, according to the interviews, the black community are the ones making the effort for integration. the white people also make the claim that everything is already integrated, except for Mardi Gras.

the dances are all segregated, the mystic clubs (oh yeah, did i mention the crazy, drunk off-their-ass, mystic clubs?) are all segregated. Mardi Gras in Mobile, Alabama, is completely segregated. in fact, at the white parade, black people aren't even allowed on the floats. they can only be in the band behind the floats. however, their is a vein of hope as one mystic group was recently formed. it's the first integrated group. it's mostly black, but it is integrated. it has ONE white member. unfortunately, as brown revealed in the q&a., he was shipped off to Iraq shortly after the parade and wasn't able to be interviewed.

overall, it was a really great documentary as it tried to be balanced, interviewing both groups, the MCA and MAMGA, but overall, it just came over that most of the white people are ass-backwards in Mobile. not all, though. there are the few. unfortunately, they're in Iraq.