A New Member In The Family
It has to appear in my mind that Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967) would be the perfect platform for current social taboos; suck as homosexuality and transgender nowadays. In my eyes, it seems like the discrimination for African American people in that decade would be the same now but homosexuals which is a big deal in our society nowadays. Of course, I would have to be some kind of difference according to 2022.
In my opinion, John seems to be the perfect man for Joanna even though he has a dark past. I could completely see their love through their eyes. Exactly that was what makes me wonder why John has had to put that kind of terms to get married? Why does he have to push to their limits to Matt and Chris? Why was he so obsessed to get her parents blessed? Why couldn't he just not care about their opinions and just run away with his future wife? Why does he need their approbation and go on?
I felt at some point in the film that I would just rather escape from the entire
super awkward situation that I would have to deal with if it were John. I think that the motivation for him to keep going was always Joanna because inside of him he knew that if he took that plane without Joanna his life would be miserable and he wouldn't have any other option than regret himself forever. I believe he always believed in his father in law's logical temperament.
In my opinion, it's hypercritical of Joanna's parents to teach her that nobody is as less human as her just for their skin color. Matt and Chris seem to me that they both have an internal fight against themselves to either accept John in his family and guarantee Joanna's happiness or be honest with themselves and just say how they feel under this unlikely situation.
I think that Monsignor Ryan was the key to changing Mr. Drayton's mind about his daughter's marriage and his image of John Prentice and how he can make his daughter happy. I guess that Monsignor's words made him believe that the whole time there wasn't anything wrong with John and Joanna's marriage but his prejudices for an old white man in the 60s. I feel like it was an internal fight in Matt's mind between what
he thinks about the union and what he's been fighting for during his life. It makes me feel proud of Matt for doing and saying the right thing instead of just taking the easier path and still being firm about his old perspective.