MALCOLM X TO OBAMA IN A BUSY YEAR FOR KINGSLEY
KINGSLEY BEN-ADIR — born and bred in London’s Kentish Town — found an unusual way of getting under the skin of American civil rights leader Malcolm X.
The 34-year-old gives a sublime portrayal of the charismatic spokesman for the radical Nation of Islam in One Night In Miami, the stunning directorial debut by Oscar-winning actress regina King.
The film imagines a meeting between Malcolm, Cassius Clay (Eli Goree), on the eve of his decision to change his name to Muhammad Ali; singer Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr. from the original Hamilton, on fine form) and NFL-star-turned-actor Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge). The four argue about how best to wage a cultural and societal revolution.
‘I did mantras on set between takes,’ admitted Ben-Adir, who cut his teeth on stage and playing pathologist dr. Marcus Summer in Brenda Blethyn’s TV show Vera. (He described Blethyn as ‘my mentor’.) ‘I would just be exploring Malcolm’s voice for all to hear, just reeling off his speeches.
‘I think a lot of the guest actors coming in found that a little difficult to deal with, but I think it was helping the concentration. It certainly helped me get into a vibe.’ That vibe has produced one of the performances of the year, in a movie that’s headed for awards season. One Night . . . was shown at the Venice Film Festival this week, and it’s screening at the Toronto International Film Festival today. Amazon Prime has plans to stream it (although no date has been set yet).
And one would hope that the London Film Festival will also give it a gala.
Ben-Adir’s portrayal isn’t an impersonation of the man born Malcolm Little, and known as detroit red in his drug hustling days, until he emerged from a stint in prison with a new name: Malcolm X.
Instead, he captures the sense of what was to come. ‘The FBI and the Nation were coming for him,’ he said. The film’s set in 1963 — two years before the activist’s assassination.
‘I studied him so closely,’ Ben-Adir said. ‘I have never had an experience where I spent so much time with one human being. It was the most obsessive I’ve ever been.’ He said he was searching for a version of Malcolm X that wasn’t the stereotypical ‘lacerating demagogue’.
The film was shot on location in New Orleans where, the British actor (now back in London) told me, it was impossible not to feel ‘more aware than you’ve ever been of just what’s going on’ at the moment in terms of racial tension.
Ben-Adir will be on TV soon in a two-part drama for HBO called The Comey rule, playing another American icon: President Obama. He doubled down on researching that role, too, because as he pointed out: ‘This is Obama! He might see it.’