A while ago, I reviewed "Green Book", claiming that it deserved its Best Picture win based on quality alone, never understanding why people were so pissed off that it won over Spike Lee's latest film at the time. Now that I managed to watch it, I finally realized why people were mad, but also why the Oscars refused to give it the win. Based on true events, it follows Ron Stallworth, the first black police detective in Colorado Springs, who is unsatisfied with being switched back and forth on various divisions. When he spots a local ad for the Ku Klux Klan in the paper, he decides to call and ask to join the organization, using a white narcotics detective to portray him undercover in the hopes to find out if the Klan is planning some sort of attack in the hopes to divert attention from the Black Panthers. There's not much to the story itself, it's basically Ron going deeper into the case in order to stop any potential attack and to prove that the Klan are more hostile than the Panthers ever were. Yes, there are historical inaccuracies in the film, but they were all done to have the story feel like a movie and to have more satisfying moments. The themes of the movie however is honestly the real reason why the Oscars chose to not let it win Best Picture, as it confronts racism and the broken system head-on with the epilogue showing how Ron is forced to not expose the Klan from his superior, racism is still very much around, and that how angry white men were enough to elect Trump as president with the film even giving a tribute to Heather Heyer by the very end. Simply put, there was no way the Oscars would have let the film win if they can't even have a black person win Best Actor. Even though it does get serious from time to time, the film still manages to have fun and levity thanks to the witty and playful dialogue as well as the chemistry of the talented actors.
John David Washington's lead debut as Ron shows how he's a A-lister in the making. Washington knows how to carry a charming energy to the character in the lighter and comedic moments, while also having an iron face in attempting to hide extreme emotions when in a situation he can't stand. While Washington is the lead actor, it almost gets overlooked by Adam Driver's Oscar-nominated role as Phillip Zimmerman, the Jewish detective who goes undercover as Stallworth. Driver knows how to make his line delivery both hilarious and chilling as he tries to blend in with the Klan members and acting as extreme as possible to not blow his cover. It almost seems like Driver is known for outburst scenes and having a quiet moniker, but that just shows how talented he is at playing both a mild-mannered and emotional character. The rest of the supporting cast is also fantastic in their own right. Laura Harrier as Ron's political activist love interest works well off of Washington as a cute couple, Topher Grace as David Duke is laughably over-the-top as the real-life scumbag, while Ryan Eggold, Paul Walter Hauser, Ashlie Atkinson and Jasper Paakokonen are brilliant as the various Klan members who realistically depict the racist perspective and how scary they can be as people with power and connections in America. There are other characters I can list, but they are far more minor in their appearances and mainly steal one scene of the movie. Overall, the cast and characters are fantastically performed, but Washington and Driver make this movie far more enjoyable than ever.
Spike Lee is one of the most acclaimed directors of our time in regards to tackling issues of race and division. Not only do his films have something to say or even keep you entertained, but he has such a cinematic vision for each of his projects. Since the film is set in the 1970's, Lee practically ensures that the film feels like it came from that time period with the more muted colours, the clever use of costume and production design to transport the viewer to the time period, and of course, the charmingly dated editing by Barry Alexander Brown. The cinematography by Chayse Irvin feels almost documentary-like at times. While the camera never fully appears as a character of its own, it grounds the film more in reality and makes it feel like it's an undiscovered home video at times in its handheld movement. The score by Terence Blanchard is on the more minimalistic side as most character or comedic scenes don't have music attached. The more serious scenes have dramatic compositions that feel appropriate from the time period. Lee's direction wasn't just to simply make a film feel like it was from the time period, but one that feels like part blaxploitation, part documentary to create a unique film that's both fun and powerful.
"BlacKkKlansman" is another masterpiece from Lee. From the interesting story, use of humour and seriousness, powerful themes of the racist and powerless system, Washington and Driver's brilliant performances, an extremely talented supporting cast that you love or hate for good reason, Brown's personality-filled editing, Irvin's on-hands camerawork, Banchard's underused yet effective score, and Lee's masterful direction and visual eye to make his film come from the 1970's. Yes, it should have deserved far more awards at the Oscars, but it doesn't mean "Green Book" was a terrible movie. Both films are effective in what they were going for, but "BlacKkKlansman" forces the issues head-on a bit more and manages to linger in your memory because of it, regardless how enjoyable "Green Book" can be. It just shows how things haven't really changed that much.
Verdict 10/10. Another perfect film that Lee can be proud of. The unspoken masterpiece from 2018 everyone will admit to agreeing on the matter.
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