BlacKkKlansman – A Movie Review

Ron Stallworth, an African American police officer from Colorado Springs, CO, successfully manages to infiltrate the local Ku Klux Klan branch with the help of a Jewish surrogate who eventually becomes its leader. Based on real events.

From filmmaker Spike Lee comes the incredible true story of an American hero. It’s the early 1970s, and Ron Stallworth is the first African-American detective to serve in the Colorado Springs Police Department. Determined to make a name for himself, Stallworth bravely sets out on a dangerous mission: infiltrate and expose the Ku Klux Klan. The young detective soon recruits a more seasoned colleague, Flip Zimmerman, into the undercover investigation of a lifetime. Together, they team up to take down the extremist hate group as the organization aims to sanitize its violent rhetoric to appeal to the mainstream.

Director: Spike Lee
Writers: Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz
Cast: Alec Baldwin, John David Washington, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Robert John Burke, Brian Tarantina, Arthur J. Nascarella, Ken Garito, Frederick Weller, Adam Driver, Michael Buscemi, Laura Harrier, Damaris Lewis, Ato Blankson-Wood, Corey Hawkins
MPAA Rating: R; Run Time: 2h 15min; Genres: Biography, Crime, Drama; US Release Date: 10 August 2018

We watched this movie last night on Amazon. We both thought it started slow but built nicely, and we enjoyed it. I’m giving it a six and Lay rates it about the same. Let us know below what you think.

(1 votes, average: 6.00 out of 10)

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In the 70’s, in Colorado Springs, the quirky Afro-American Ron Stallworth joins the police department and is assigned to work in the records room. Soon he offers to work undercover in the Narcotics, but his chief assigns him to infiltrate in a black movement led by Stokely Carmichael instead, where he meets the leader of the students Patrice Dumas. When he sees a Ku Klux Klan advertisement in the newspaper, Ron contacts the organization and is invited to join it. He is readily accepted by local leader Walter Breachway (Ryan Eggold) with only one problem. He can’t meet Breachway face to face. He recruits Detective Flip Zimmerman (Adam Driver) to be the face while he provides the voice. Eventually, he would even connect with Grand Wizard David Duke (Topher Grace).

Flip’s infiltration into the local KKK is compelling. It seems immediately stupid that Ron continues to do the calls. It’s not a carefully conceived investigation. Also the third act bombing is too conveniently staged. It needs to be more realistic and more messy. It wraps up too neatly. There are aspects that feels too artificial which detracts from the tension. The subject matter requires the movie to be more real. At times, Spike Lee pushes into satire territories but nevertheless, it is still one of his better recent movies.

Characters, such as the Police Chief, could have been more developed which would have added to the story, and did have Lee’s usual social commentary thrown right in your face, but it is a story and commentary that needs to be front and center right now, but it was a bit clumsily tacked on.

Lee did a great job or portraying the period. It almost seemed parody, but having lived during much of that period, I know it was an accurate reflection of how many people felt at the time. He created an appropriate level of drama and comedy to the movie. Adam Driver gave the best performance of the movie. He brought a lot of internal tension and suspense to his role.

Glad we watched it, but glad we didn’t pay for theater tickets. It is a movie everyone should watch.