Across the Tracks

A short tale that encompasses both sibling rivalry and that old taboo subject of "I passed for white" is well-written and directed by Michael Cooke. I just saw the 4-year-old short subject on TV in a Saturday afternoon of movies from Black directors. I see from his IMDb credits that he hasn't made the big time yet, but on the basis of this offering he deserves a shot.

It's affecting in both the adult section and the flashback to childhood for two sisters, played by four evocative actresses. They meet at their mom's house on the occasion of her death, and bitter memories are evoked, the climax in flashback quite shattering as depicted by Cooke.

Besides the obvious interest for Black audiences, I found some universal truths coming out of this particular situation, previously handled in a completely different context in Spike Lee's underrated "School Daze".