“All Power to all people”
Release Date: August 10th, 2018
Length: 2H 15M
Genre: Biography, Crime, Drama
MPAA: 14A
Spike Lee is a filmmaker that has made some really relevant films over the years. I did not know too much about him until I studied one of his most famous films Do The Right Thing (1989) in university. He makes films you talk about, that make you think about yourself and whats going on in the world. BlacKkKlansman is absolutely no different, and in fact this might be the most relevant piece of cinema I’ve seen in the last couple of years.
BlacKkKlansman is a biography, crime and drama film about Ron Stallworth, an African American police officer from Colorado Springs, Colorado, successfully manages to infiltrate the local Ku Klux Klan branch with the help of a Jewish surrogate who eventually becomes its leader. Based on actual events.
As I previously opened with, BlacKkKlansman is directed by Spike Lee. His filmography consists of Do The Right Thing (1989), 25th Hour (2002), Inside Man (2006), Michael Jackson: This Is It (2009), and even the story mode of NBA 2K16 {Video Game} (2015). I really need to watch more Spike Lee films, I think he’s a really great filmmaker, that does not shy away from making controversial films or calling it how he sees it. BlacKkKlansman, in my opinion was directed with such care and such mastery, that I felt as if I was watching a documentary. He was able to tell an interesting story and easily gets you invested in everything that was presented on screen. I really did not know what would happen next and I was found myself genuinely invested in the story and the main characters for the entire run time. How Lee was able to tie this crazy story into events going on today, really drove the points of the film home.
BlacKkKlansman stars John David Washington as Ron Stallworth, Adam Driver as Flip Zimmerman, Laura Harrier as Patrice Dumas, and Topher Grace as David Duke.
John David Washington’s filmography consists of nothing I have ever seen before. I didn’t even know when I saw the trailer for this movie that this actor was Denzel Washington’s son. After that fact, it was a little funny, that when I closed my eyes, it literally sounded like it was Denzel talking. All funny business aside, John David is a really talented actor (doesn’t surprise me because he is cut from the cloth of his father, who is one of my favourite actors of all time). He was brilliant in BlacKkKlansman, he was funny, he was sincere. I felt like I was watching the actual Ron Stallworth (I don’t know how accurate this film is, but I felt like he really encapsulated this character). I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up being nominated for an Oscar for this role.
Adam Driver’s filmography consists of Lincoln (2012), Inside Llewyn Davis (2013), The F Word (2013), Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), Logan Lucky (2017), and Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi (2017). Adam Driver has to have one of the most interesting careers as of late. He plays Kylo Ren in the Star Wars films, but when he’s not doing these fantasy films, he really stretches his talented to every other genre of film he can. He can be funny, he can be dramatic and serious or he can be a one handed bar tender (I’m looking at you Logan Lucky). I thought Driver was great in this role, and had great chemistry with John David Washington.
Laura Harrier’s filmography consists of Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017). I am not familiar with Harrier’s acting much, she played Liz in Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) and was really enjoyable in that role. But in this role we got to see a completely different side to her acting chops, and I thought she was great in this role. I did not even recognize it was her until I watched some of the making of and I saw her face.
Topher Grace’s filmography consists of Traffic (2000), That ’70s Show {TV Series} (1998-2006), Spider-Man 3 (2007), Predators (2010), Interstellar (2014), and American Ultra (2015). Topher Grace I feel has been trying to get out of the shadow of playing Eric Foreman in That ’70s Show ever since he was no longer a part of the cast. He’s really fantastic to be honest, and I this is definitely one of the most interesting roles I have seen him play. He’s playing David Duke, the founding member of the KKK, I mean how could it not be interesting? He was down right vile, evil and captivating in this role.
One thing is for sure when you watch a Spike Lee film, is that the acting would be spot on and it would be a showcase of great acting, BlacKkKlansman was absolutely no different.
Lastly, I think the soundtrack to this movie was really well done too. I didn’t know many of the songs but I found myself asking Siri what was playing so I could check out this music. It really added a lot to the film.
I think what really drove this movie home for me, was how Spike Lee was able to tie the themes and the messages of this movie into real life events. The ending scene provides some real life footage; I don’t want to ruin it at all, but its worth watching the movie just to see how Lee is able to tie it all together. It left me in tears, twice.
I watched this film twice in a week, and was just as captivated and repulsed as I was the first time. I laughed, I cried and I learned something; to me thats a success.
I give BlacKkKlansman a 4.5/5.
If you like films based on a true story, or you want to just be incapsulated and engulfed in an intriguing story that almost sounds like its fake, but its not. Definitely check out BlacKkKlansman.
I wouldn’t be surprised if this film is nominated for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Male Actor in a Leading Role at the Academy Awards this year.
**Also if I saw this movie in 2018, It would have easily made my top 12 of the year. stay tuned for my write up of that.