Judas and the Black Messiah
True-life drama. With Daniel Kaluuya, LaKeith Stanfield and Jesse Plemons. Director: Shaka King. 16LPV.
In the ’60s, thief-turned-FBI informant William O’Neal (Stanfield) is tasked with infiltrating the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party, an African-American revolutionary movement, and gaining the trust of their charismatic young leader, Fred Hampton (Get Out’s Kaluuya).
O’Neal walks a precarious line, manipulating both his comrades and handler, FBI agent Roy Mitchell (Fargo’s Plemons). As Hampton’s political influence grows, he falls in love with fellow activist Deborah Johnson (Dominique Fishback), while the political plans of FBI director J Edgar Hoover (Martin Sheen) to quash the Panthers’ operations intensify.
O’Neal reaches an ethical juncture – align with the activists or subdue Hampton by any means necessary.
Told from O’Neal’s perspective, this biographical drama was nominated for six Oscars and won two, including best supporting actor for Kaluuya.
With excellent storytelling and outstanding performances, it highlights the sacrifices and compromises activists must make and pays tribute to the Panthers’ social justice work. The filmmakers skilfully navigate outdated misconceptions about the Panthers and demonstrate Hampton’s integral role and collaborative approach through his rainbow coalition in which he united civil rights movements across all racial lines.
The acclaimed team behind the film –including producer Ryan Coogler, who directed Black Panther (2018), and Oscar-nominated cinematographer Sean Bobbitt (Widows) – add gravitas and depth.
The film’s contemporary relevance is inescapable as it expertly demonstrates how institutionalised racism enables the corruption of power, racial injustice, police brutality and prejudice towards the oppressed.
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