Black people are obsessed with hair. At least that’s the natural conclusion to be drawn from this exposé of the hair industry from comedian Chris Rock. From $1,000 hair extensions to a painful chemical straightener called relaxer, this is a $9 billion industry that forms a large part of black culture.
But the long-term effects of this obsession have repercussions that ripple across black society and health, and permeate down to the most surprising of sources.
In many ways this is a pretty dry documentary, with mainly studio-bound talking head interviews conducted by Rock and some averagely shot location pieces.
As it progresses though, several truly jaw-dropping things happen.
First, there is an unbelievably outlandish hair show called Bonner Bros, in which participants compete in a Hair Battle Royale, the finale of which features – I kid you not – an underwater hair cut and a full-size marching band.
Then there’s a scientific demonstration of the effects of hair relaxer – used by children as young as three – which dissolves a Coke can in an hour. One member of Salt-n-Pepa admits her famously asymmetrical hair only came about because she had burnt her scalp after applying relaxer.
But the most shocking revelation is that the weaves made of human hair, costing up to $4,000, are actually sourced from India, China, and other parts of Asia. In fact, human hair is one of India’s largest exports – much of it sacrificed as part of a Hindu ceremony called tonsuring. One temple known for tonsuring is second only to the Vatican in revenue – and it obtains all its hair for free as part of the tonsure.
Surprisingly, Chris Rock doesn’t supply many comedic moments in the documentary. That’s left to the interviewees, from a straight talking Reverend Al Sharpton recalling his days with James Brown, to a resplendent Maya Angelou (“hair is a glory”), to Ice-T in full-on pimp mode.
This is fascinating and funny and deserving of an audience well beyond its black origins.
[etRating value=“ 4”]
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