Review of Corrina, Corrina (1994) by Susan S — 31 Oct 2016

Corina Corina was not a typical box office driven film, but more like an art film with subtle, quiet scenes of despair and loneliness uncharacteristic of American cinema. Whoopie Goldberg as Corina, hired by a bereft father, Manny Singer (played by Ray Alioto) who has just lost his wife, is an unusual caretaker and maid. Black, educated and enlightened toward the needs of Manny's young daughter, Molly, (Tina Majorino) Goldberg plays this role almost effortlessly, as if it were made for her. She slowly introduces the young child to concepts of an afterlife, and quietly invades the father's shutdown state with her delicate, ad hoc approach to grief.

The slow pace and lack of peak moments might bother the average American viewer, but the slow, steady bonds that develop among the characters are laced with humor and sensitivity. In fact, this film succeeds wildly in its effort to depict the genuine connection here between employee and family. It surpasses the typical 'race' film by minimizing the social milieu and instead emphasizing the personalities of the characters, making this film a genuine classic.

Goldberg works out her relationship with sister and family with the same quiet fortitude she brings to her two grieving charges. Throughout the film each move she makes and each scene in which she brings life to the little girl, and to her sister's children, stand out as crystalline examples of the power of simply, homely love. Eventually she makes a decision on her own to keep the little girl out of school, causing a rift between her and Alioto; this too, after one inflamed passage between them of strain and alienation. is expressed quietly, and resolves in the last moments when the two at last must face the intensity and endurance of their relationship. An incredibly moving and authentic picture of life without the usual American film clichés.