BLACKKKLANSMAN : Tuesday 21st August 2018.

I saw 'BLACKKKLANSMAN' this week and this American biographical crime drama is Directed, Co-Produced and Co-Written for the screen by Spike Lee and is based on the true life story and exploits of one Ron Stallworth as recounted in his 2014 book of the same name 'Black Klansman'. Released in the US earlier this month, the film had its Premier screening in competition for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival in May this year, where it won the Grand Prix. Costing in the region of US$15M the film has garnered generally positive Reviews, and has so far grossed US$28M.

Beginning in 1972, Ron Stallworth (John David Washington, and son of Denzel) was the first African-American Police Officer and Detective to join the Colorado Springs Police Department. He is initially assigned to the records room, which needless to say he finds mundane and beneath him. After a short time, he requests a transfer to go undercover, and after refusing his request Chief Bridges (Robert John Burke) has a change of heart and assigns him to attend a local rally presented by the Colorado College at which national civil rights leader Kwame Ture (Corey Hawkins) will be guest speaker. At the rally Stallworth meets Patrice Dumas (Laura Harrier) the President of the black Student Union at the College and a strong supporter of civil rights for Americas black population.

Afterwards Patrice agrees to meet Stallworth at a local bar for a night-cap. Before though she had agreed to drive Kwame Ture back to his hotel. En route however, their car is pulled over by patrolman Andy Landers (Frederick Weller) a racist corrupt Police Officer working in the same precinct as Stallworth, and who has already given the rookie cop a hard time. Landers threatens Ture and sexually assaults Patrice who recounts this to Stallworth when they meet up later that evening. At this point Stallworth has been very guarded about the nature of his work.

Following the rally and having gained enough of an insight to convince Chief Bridges to continue with the investigation, Stallworth is reassigned to the intelligence division. While reading the paper at his desk one morning, he comes across an advertisement recruiting new members into the local Ku Klux Klan. Stallworth calls the number listed and pretends to be a white man. He speaks with Walter Breachway (Ryan Eggold), the President of the Colorado Springs chapter posing as a racist white man that 'hates blacks, Jews, Mexicans and Asians', and anyone basically who is not a pure blood white Anglo Saxon American.

Stallworth and his Jewish coworker, Phillip 'Flip' Zimmerman (Adam Driver) are forced into an unlikely partnership. Zimmerman is chosen to act as Stallworth in order to meet the Ku Klux Klan members in person. He attends a meeting and meets with Breachway one evening in a bar, along with the more radicalised member Felix Kendrickson (Jasper Paakkonen) whose obese wife Connie (Ashlie Akinson) is equally as radicalised, and another member named Ivanhoe (Paul Walter Hauser) who indicates, somewhat mockingly, of an upcoming attack. 

Stallworth and Zimmerman continue to massage their relationship with the local Ku Klux Klan chapter - the former always and only over the phone and the latter always and only in person. Under the guise of wanting to hurry up his membership to the 'organisation' (aka the Ku Klux Klan) so that he can attend cross burning ceremonies as a bone fide paid up member, Stallworth calls David Duke (Topher Grace), the Grand Wizard, in Louisiana, with whom he quickly strikes up regular conversations over the phone. Duke expedites Stallworth's membership, and before you know it, he's official! Meanwhile, getting deeper into the throes of the organisation and uncovering more clandestine goings on, Stallworth has begun dating Patrice but has still not let on that he is a Police Officer.

David Duke announced over the phone to Stallworth that he intends to visit Colorado Springs to meet with him in person and preside over his initiation into the organisation. Chief Bridges assigns the real Stallworth to security detail for Duke, which despite his protestations Stallworth must comply with. Zimmerman once again masquerades as Stallworth for the purposes of his Klan initiation ceremony together with a bunch of other new recruits. At a Reception immediately afterwards, Zimmerman is recognised by another Klan member, Walker (Nicholas Turturro) as the Police Officer who sent him down to serve jail time. Walker in turn alerts Felix who sensed something wasn't quite right about Stallworth from the get go, and with the real Stallworth and the fake Stallworth both in the room at the same time sets up a comedy of errors.

Connie, who can hardly contain herself out of excitement at the prospect of killin' some blacks, leaves the ceremony under instruction from husband Felix to place a bomb at a civil rights rally to be attended by Patrice. Stallworth realises her intentions, and alerts the local Police Department. Connie calls Felix from the site of the planned attack interrupting his luncheon welcoming the new members, saying that the place is buzzing with Police cars, and what should she do? Felix directs Connie to use their 'Plan B' by placing the bomb at Patrice's house. Connie drives to Patrice's home, but before she can place the bomb, Patrice arrives, leaving Connie panicked. Unable to fit the bomb in the mailbox as intended, she runs around out of sight and locates the C4 bomb under Patrice's car instead.

Stallworth arrives and tackles Connie, but is pretty quickly detained by Police Officers who have arrived at the scene, and despite his protests and claims to be an undercover Police Officer is beaten to the ground into submission. Felix, Ivanhoe, and bomb maker Walker, arrive minutes later and park next to Patrice's car, and, thinking the bomb is located in the mailbox on the porch, detonate it, unintentionally killing themselves in the process, having parked right alongside the car bomb planted by Connie. Zimmerman arrives and frees Stallworth from the over zealous Police Officers, while Connie is distraught and promptly arrested. 

Afterwards while celebrating their success in a bar, Stallworth and Patrice are approached by a drunken Landers who openly brags about his last encounter with Patrice and his feelings of contempt for black people. Chief Bridges then waltzes in and promptly arrests Landers having heard his 'confession' via wiretap worn by Stallworth. The next day, Chief Bridges meets with Stallworth and Zimmerman in his office and congratulates them on  job well done, but orders them to cease their investigation immediately and to destroy all records pertaining to the case. 

A dejected Stallworth leaves the office as his phone starts to ring. Doubling back to answer it, it is Duke on the line. After some friendly banter, with Zimmerman and various Police colleagues listening in, Stallworth reveals to Duke that he is a black man before hanging up abruptly with an 'FU muthafugga' leaving a speechless Duke dazed and confused on the other end.

This film is as relevant today as it was back in the day, and it speaks volumes to the political sentiment that peppers the Trump administration of the present day. The end of the film shows footage of just one year ago at the Charlottesville Unite the Right Rally in which white supremacists, counter-protesters and a vehicle ram raid into the gathered crowd took the life of young Heather Heyer, together with Trump's controversial statements that followed. This is a thought provoking film that clearly demonstrates Lee's deft touch at hard hitting social commentary that neatly wraps up a clear message taken from history that remains highly pertinent almost fifty years later. The more things change, the more things stay the same is the key message here, and in 'Blackkklansman' there is hatred, racism, bigotry, violence and injustice intertwined with moments of humour, strong performances and a storyline as real and shocking as it is, that is engaging, grounded and well told. You should watch this film as it is one of Lee's best in recent years.

'Blackkklansman' is worthy of four claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard, out of a possible five.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-