• Post category:Movies
  • Post last modified:November 15, 2021

Judas and the Black Messiah

In the late 1960s, petty thief William O’Neal (Lakeith Stanfield) is forced to become an informer for the FBI, infiltrating the Black Panthers in Illinois, which is led by the charismatic Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya). The story about how the FBI and the local police targeted Hampton, leading ultimately to his killing at the hands of cops, leaves little room for any gray shades and is essentially a familiar portrait of an informer who grows close to his target and has qualms about what he’s doing. However, the filmmakers’ point of view convincingly emphasizes the racism of the era as it is colorfully recreated, generating a compelling thriller-drama with strong performances by the two leads.

2021-U.S. 126 min. Color. Widescreen. Produced by Ryan Coogler, Charles D. King, Shaka King. Directed by Shaka King. Screenplay: Will Berson, Shaka King. Cinematography: Sean Bobbitt. Song: ”Fight for You” (H.E.R., D’Mile, Tiara Thomas). Cast: Lakeith Stanfield (William O’Neal), Daniel Kaluuya (Fred Hampton), Jesse Plemons (Roy Mitchell), Dominique Fishback, Ashton Sanders, Algee Smith… Martin Sheen.

Oscars: Best Supporting Actor (Kaluuya), Original Song. Golden Globe: Best Supporting Actor (Kaluuya). BAFTA: Best Supporting Actor (Kaluuya). 

Last word: “Fred Hampton, Jr. was a consultant for the movie and on set during production. When I spoke with him, he said he was only just now able to watch the movie through the eyes of a regular audience member. He liked it well enough, though he wished they could’ve gotten some more of the politics in there. Then he smiled and said, ‘a revolutionary is never satisfied.'” (Shaka King, NPR)

 

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