Anthony (Mailon Rivera)
seems to have it all: a beautiful wife, a big house with a hot tub
and a view of the picturesque California hills.
He’s joined for dinner and drinks by his best friend, Michael
(Steve White), a man seething with anger over racial slights real
and perceived. The complicated relationship between the two friends
is evidenced in Michael’s contemptuous attitude towards Anthony’s
frigid white wife, Victoria (Kristen Shaw).
Rounding out the group is Michael’s sexually adventurous
wife, Sarah (A.J. Johnson). The couples spend a day stirring a potent
conversational elixir spiked with illusions of freaky sex, hidden
resentments and racial tension.
While this undercurrent of issues percolate just beneath the surface,
Skin Deep takes a sharp turn following the suspicious death
of one of the women. Friends choose sides, secrets surface and the
accusations begin to fly towards a potentially lethal conclusion.
Skin Deep, winner of the 2003 best film award at the American
Black Film Festival in Miami, is written by Sacha Parisot and Ken
Karn and directed by Parisot. Skin Deep is a compelling
psychological thriller that illustrates how the most mundane of
threads can unravel leaving feelings and emotions, raw and exposed.
Look for standout performances from comedian Steve White (Best
Actor, American Black Film Festival) and the volatile Debra Wilson
as a mysterious tenant.
-- Kim Moir | 
