"Hidden Fence Light" does not sound like a catchy phrase for a hit monologue. "Saturday Night Live" writers couldn't care less, though, as they executed it to perfection. The monologue, which featured this week's host of the show, Octavia Spencer, touched on a nervy issue -- movies produced and starring black movie makers.
A hit monologue
The monologue aired during the March 4 episode of "Saturday Night Live," with Father John Misty serving as the musical guest. During her speech, Spencer joked about how she dreamed of a mash-up of some of the most prominent films starring black actors over the past year.
Suddenly, a poster flashed on the screen for "Hidden Fence Light," a mash-up movie of "Hidden Figures," "Fences," and Academy Award winning film "Moonlight."
It wasn't the last joke Spencer would make about award season during her monologue -- just the best one. She also joked about how she had to wear Spanx for the past several months to make herself look all glamorous for the cameras and fans, before laughing it off and claiming she was still wearing them. Another painfully accurate joke discussed her roles in the past, especially of a maid in "The Help," claiming that her "resting nurse face" was to blame for her casting.
Behind the joke
The "Hidden Fence Light" would be an obvious gag for anyone who has been paying attention to award show buzz over the past several months.
For unclear reasons, people constantly referred to Spencer's film as "Hidden Fences," combining titles of two films with little in common, other than award nominations. "Moonlight" simply added to the charade.
The more sinister element surrounding the joke, however, involves the depiction of black actors/actresses in film, something Spencer made note of during her monologue.
It was only a year ago where the hashtag "#OscarsSoWhite" was pointing out the lack of diversity in hit and acclaimed films. The fact that critics, fans, and telecasters were mashing up the films, even accidentally, gave way to claims of a bigger institutional problem surrounding diversity in films today.
