"QUINCY": A TALE OF IMPERFECTION, MORTALITY, AND REALIZATION
2+ hours is a lot to ask for any engagement, let alone a documentary. It took me 3 days to complete the journey, but Netflix recent release of Rashida Jones directed biopic - “Quincy” is one for the ages. If you watched the Emmy’s this year, you likely saw SNL Star, Michael Che’s skit of Reperations to Black Actors. I don’t follow social media enough to know the tone in which our US society ingested the intent of this skit - but I applaud Michael Che for using his platform to shed light on how much of American Culture has been built on African American Culture, yet seldom has the celebratory acclaim that often accompanies cultural advancement been awarded to the Black community. It’s for this, that Quincy Jones, his story, his legacy, his complete domination of American culture for multiple centuries, truly does warrant a documentary of epic proportions.
In case you don’t know much about Quincy, here are the Cliffs Notes:
Oprah - yeah the baddest woman in the world - Thank you Quincy and Color Purple
Michael Jackson - shy, talented, but needing guidance - Thanks Q
Frank Sinatra - oh you thought “Fly Me To The Moon” was a Rat Pack Production?
Count Bassie, Miles Davis - some of the best jazz artist you know…
Thriller - oh short films? - yep, Quincy invented the concept
Fresh Prince of Bel-Air…
Vibe Magazine
Slavery isn’t just lazy black folks…How about “Roots - The Movie”
Ray Charles - The Icon - Q made that
That South Park - “We Are The World” skit - thanks humanitarian Quincy
More and more and more…
The Netflix documentary helps us all realize the MASSIVE influence Quincy has had on American culture, but more importantly it examines, while quietly, a man who is battling, avoiding, discovering both fatherhood and manhood for the length of his full life. Quincy demonstrates nearly every single strand of fatherhood - good and bad - in a documentary created by his daughter, Rashida Jones, a product of a failed marriage to former Mod Squad star and beauty - Peggy Lipton.
Quincy is a driven man. He was born to a mother afflicted with schitophrenia. Abandoned, or at least less attended to, Quincy explores the world of South Side Chicago in limbo. This distance and almost resentment of his mother is presented as a base of his race away from mediocrity and weakness. There are so many upsides - a driven man, a musical genius, a traveler. But there’s also an almost defining soberness to this upbringing. One that seems to create an allowance for Quincy to abandon his responsibilities as a father (7 children by 5 women) in favor of his work. He’s honest about his chasing of women and lust for attention, drinking…lots of drinking, and overall a strong yet selfish way of being that enamored much of America, yet alienated his family and most of all the women he loved.
It’s not until Quincy experiences a series of health scares in his mid to later years that he confronts mortality. The idea that we won’t live forever…That life is more than just our success and recognition. A man with 7 children comes to realize - they are his legacy and purpose. We don’t find Quincy ever settling into traditional fatherhood, but he finds a new crevice of humanitarianism. Even when Quincy wasn’t being Dad of the Year, we could see that mentorship was in his veins. Quincy practically raised Michael Jackson - but that commitment came with a reward. With your own kids - your own normal kids that go to baseball practice - there is no selfish reward other than the love and joy you feel in being a part of their lives.
We see Quincy - as he resigns himself to a wheelchair at times - start to focus on family in spurts, but not as a full act. And we’re left to wonder - does it take death, illness, or a fear of relevance loss to move some of the most financially and culturally successful BDads to see balance in their world? Is it even fair to ask them for this level of family attention, considering the commitment it takes to be great at what you do? We don’t know, but I found myself battling with this judgement of Q for being a distant dad chasing his dreams and placing burden on the mother of his children, while also admiring his drive and commitment to greatness while ensuring financial stability would be in place for his children, grandchildren, and many to come. This film really raises a strong ethical question of “The Role of a Financially Successful and Ambitious Father”. I won’t pretend to know the answer but I think the ups and downs of Quincy in this film make us BDads really pay attention to the matter and how much our choices can impact the lives of our families.
Congrats to the Jones family for such a wonderful film for all dads, music and culture fans, and all Americans. A worthy viewing for sure.