Everything
Director and writer Spike Lee returned to film royalty after his debut of BlacKkKlansman at the Cannes Film Festival this year, and after hitting cinemas on the weekend, critics and film fanatics have praised the film. Despite the trailer alluding to a comedic satire on the height of the Ku Klux Klan, the film also gives light to the dangerous and deadly truth behind the supremacist group.
Set in 1972 in Colorado Springs, the film follows the true story of African-American detective Ron Stallworth (John David Washington) who sets out to infiltrate and expose the local chapter of Ku Klux Klan. He recruits Flip Zimmerman (Adam Driver) a white, Jewish cop to go undercover into the most feared cult of that time. Rising through the ranks, they befriend the head wizard, in a bid to prevent a deadly terrorist attack. A true happy ending never arrives, but rather is successful in inhibiting the immediate issue as racism is never truly resolved.
“The best movies are not created in a vacuum or a boardroom,” Paul Dergarabedian, a box office analyst with comScore said. “They are created by filmmakers who are sponges of what’s going on and channel those observations into their script. Spike Lee, being the powerful filmmaker that he is, certainly used that to inform his filmmaking.”
Intentionally released on the anniversary of the Charlottesville riot, this is the first film to tackle the Trump government head-on. Including President Trump’s comments after the conflict – the infamous remark about “very fine people on both sides” – the film enlightens society that while short-term issues can be taken down, long-time racists and communities are a long-time problem.
Watch the trailer below, and book a seat at the cinema ASAP.
