Natchez

At an antebellum home in Natchez, Mississippi, a group of older women convene as members of the local Garden Club. The charismatic mayor of Natchez, Dan Gibson, arrives and addresses the chatty and enthusiastic women: “I’m excited that Natchez is a new Natchez — one that appreciates and loves our city — all of it, even the bad, but it is our history. It is also a city that believes in coming together in love — and if we ever needed it in America, we need it today.” This proclamation sets off filmmaker Suzannah Herbert’s sharp exploration of the American South’s unreconciled history.

The haunting Natchez is a potent choral portrait of a town reliant on its antebellum past to survive, and how its idiosyncratic citizens navigate — and reflect on — their town’s history and memory. With an observant lens, Herbert foregrounds a dynamic array of distinctive residents — from the outspoken and thoughtful “Rev”, a preacher who provides comprehensive tours of the town and is the self-ascribed “best tour guide in America”, to the charming hoopskirt-wearing Southern belle Tracy. With palpable intimacy, Herbert’s film reveals a looming reckoning that asks the question: who gets to tell America’s story?—Jose Rodriguez