Book Lovers Pt. 9: Disappearing Acts
- thevaginaliberator
- 5 days ago
- 3 min read
(The book > the movie, and Franklin needs therapy)
Let’s start from the beginning.
The movie is still my favorite—but whew, they left out so many critical details about Franklin and Zora’s relationship. I won’t spoil those for anyone who wants to read the book, but trust me: the book adds layers that make Franklin’s behavior even more frustrating.
Quick Synopsis (No Spoilers)
Zora is a music school teacher and an aspiring singer. She moves to Brooklyn because the rent is cheaper—she’s cutting corners so she can pay for singing lessons and record her demo tape. She’s single, child-free, and never been married. Focused. Driven. Mind on her future.
She meets Franklin in her apartment building. Franklin is a contractor with very unstable work. On a good day, he makes about $50. He has dreams, though: night school, his own contracting business, joining the union for better pay and benefits.
Ironically, they both promise themselves they won’t date until they reach their goals.
You already know how that goes.
They meet, fall for each other, move in together, and fall in love. And eventually, Zora realizes she’s made the biggest mistake of her life—unfortunately, a little too late.
Franklin: The Walking Red Flag 🚩
I can’t count how many heart attacks Franklin gave me. He starts out as a man with pride and slowly morphs into a man completely comfortable being taken care of.
Franklin’s real issue? Severe mommy issues.
Every few pages it’s:
“Zora, I need you.”
“You don’t give me attention, I need you.”
“Why are you always with your friends? I need you.”
“You give the baby all your attention—what about me?”
“Lie down with me, I had a bad day.”
DAMN.
He was needy as hell but couldn’t provide a single thing for Zora to need. He went from her man to her son, and it was uncomfortable in every way.
Let’s Talk About Zora (Because Accountability Is Real)
At first, I felt bad for Zora—but let’s be clear:
Zora did NOT want a man “so badly.”She was focused on her goals. She was disciplined. She had a plan.
Franklin was handsome. He was charming. And once she decided to like him—once she started really learning him—she felt sorry for him.
That was her downfall.
She empathized with his struggles instead of respecting her own boundaries.
Because listen… the moment she found out he’d been “trying” to get divorced for six years should’ve stopped everything. This was the 90s, early 2000s. You mean to tell me he made so little money that he couldn’t afford a divorce in SIX YEARS?!
On top of that:
She let him move in too early
She let him convince her to move into a more expensive apartment
She paid all the rent and bills
Maxed out both credit cards
Drained her savings
My sympathy evaporated quickly.
Book vs. Movie
The book is incredible. The movie feels rushed now. The only upside is that it’s easy to picture Wesley Snipes as Franklin and Sanaa Lathan as Zora.
But the book? Much better. Much deeper. Much more stressful.
If you haven't, read the book first then watch the movie. For some reason platforms do not stream this movie so here's a link from youtube (free).
Fun fact, this was my favorite childhood movie!
Happy Reading,
The Vagina Liberator
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