BlacKkKlansman

Literally... I have never been in a movie theater and said - Damn, I need to see every single movie in these trailers - until Monday. They showed the trailers for Widows, Monsters & Men, and If Beale Street Could Talk - that's right, the James Baldwin novel (the same one my dad tried to make me read when I was like 10 and I lied and said I did, and got smacked when I thought I could trick him into thinking I read it by just reading a paragraph here or there - memories.... Anyway, I'm so effing in those movies I might need protection - too much?). 

Back to the flick - I kid you not, BlacKkKlansman (or Black Klansman) is the most poignant and overall satisfying Spike Lee feature film since Malcolm X (and, arguably, Do the Right Thing) and I LOVED that Malcolm X flick - that was the first Oscar they stole from Denzel.

Usually, I don't do this, but I went and read some of the critiques of BlacKkKlansman online before I finalized my own review and I really don't understand some of these critics' issues with this film.  I mean, the nerve of some of these asshats.  Interestingly, a one of these so called fill buffs credited movies like Django and directors like Quentin Tarantino (notwithstanding that flick being pure fiction) for it's "historical accuracy" but only with respect to the use of the 'n-word.' Another of those clowns is giving Spike Lee crap about his fictionalizing of a true story because Spike takes liberties with whether the kkk actually hated a Jewish undercover cop (why, you ask, does this genius take issue with that? Well, because in the real life version of the story, there's no mention of whether the cop was Jewish...  Yup, so BlacKkKlansman missed the mark for that?) 

I'm looking at you real sideways and straight up Kevin Hart clapping as I say this @JamesDawson from The Federalist - 'You loved that Hateful Eight bullshorts, but couldn't stomach this... okay.  We don't believe you. You need more people.

VITALS
Spike Lee (if you don't know Spike's work... stop reading now and go grab a mirror and take a look at a dummy) - Writer/Director
Other Writing Credits got to - Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz, and Kevin Wilmott
John David Washington (upcoming Monsters and Men and TV's Ballers) - Ron Stallworth
Adam Driver (Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Frances Ha) - Flip Zimmerman
Laura Harrier (Spiderman; Homecoming) - Patrice Dumas
Topher Grace (Spider Man 3, Interstellar) - David Duke
Alec Baldwin (Glengarry Glen Ross, Boss Baby, Schweatty Balls Alec) - Dr. Kennebrew Beauregard
Michael Buscemi (who I totally thought was Steve for about 30 seconds... ) - Jimmy Creek
Robert John Burke (Miracle at St. Anna, Limitless, Safe) -
Isaiah Whitlock (who I think you all know better as Clay Davis from the Wire... you know... this guy

The rest of the notable cast includes Frederick Weller, Paul Walter Hauser, Damaris Lewis, and Corey Hawkins as Kwame Ture.

IF YOU MUST KNOW

Ron Stallworth, a college graduate joins the Colorado Springs Police Department. When hired, they call him the Jackie Robinson of the CSPD.  Stallworth has to endure the bigotry and racism of some of his fellow officers as he integrates that police department (I'm sure that never happens anymore), but like many of us... we know what we're getting into so racism doesn't phase us too much - we find ways to get back... Stallworth took the route of becoming one of the best detectives in the CPSD.  That's one way to go, I guess.

So, Spike takes us on this Officer Stallworth's journey as he initially tries to do the work he's assigned, but soon his desire to do something more substantial than retrieve files for men who lack moral character but are given badges and guns. Like most of us who have had to be the only vanilla bean in the vanilla ice cream (of an office, class, etc.), we just hope that what we're sacrificing ends up being worth it.

Spike, in true Spike fashion has some interesting scenes of straight speechifying.  For example, the scene where Stallworth is assigned to go undercover and ends up meeting the outspoken female President of the Black Student Union at an event where the controversial ex-panther, Stokley Carmichael/Kwame Ture is set to address the community.  His mission is to go wear a wire and listen to Ture, and gauge the crowd's reaction.  Would they be roused to violence?  With that "all power to all the people" business and "black power" and "black is beautiful" craziness, the police was concerned that he might encourage black folk. They could end up being proud to be black and therefore dangerously emboldened and whipped into a frenzy.  Black Panthers didn't walk around with dope tech, fresh handshakes, and screaming Wakanda Forever.  They walked around with pistols, shottys, and were versed in the gun laws of the local jurisdictions, the knew the Constitution, they fed hungry people, and - they were largely killed for it by the kkk and the some government sponsored "law enforcement."

But, I digress.  I'm starting to channel my Pops on this review.  Don't get me started.  I'm still vexed that there are idiots out there that think that it is even possible to be hyperbolic about the breadth of the kkk's racism and the lengths to which they still go to protect their deadly ideals.

Stallworth, after hearing the eloquent words of Ture, decides - on a lark - to give a call to the kkk.  Surprisingly, he gets a call back.  So, when he gets the go-ahead to take a look under the hood (pun intended) of the local kkk chapter, he is assigned a white partner because somebody had to do the meet up with the klan. Flip Zimmerman (interesting choice of last name to use in a film like this - all things considered) played by Adam Driver - who I genuinely dis-enjoy watching mess up my Star Wars movies, but was really good in this flick - is the white cop designated to stand in for the black cop who the kkk was interested in recruiting.

Alec Baldwin's amusingly disgusting racist rant was a lighthearted and interesting tone to set off the film.  Watching Topher Grace play David Duke... I mean, it's David Duke so you hate him, but then you love how much of an idiot he is, so... you kinda like him (and you can still kinda see that Forman face from That 70's Show). It's great casting (I know that might sound like shade, but I have nothing but respect for Topher - aside from his name... I can't cosign that, bro.  That's a choice.)

Yet, if you paid attention, there was a lot of seriousness to this movie.  That's what makes it a bit of a gem.  The speech by Kwame Ture (Hawkins) was one of the highlights of the film.  So was the fact that the Stallworth and his lady had their dramatic tension over the issue of whether you can change the system from inside the system.  I happen to agree with Stallworth, but it's damned near impossible.  And damn, that last convo with that long time kkk'er who a certain orange guy at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave, NW, DC claims to have not known anything about (although he really did!) was satisfying even if it never ever really happened.

If I say too much more about the things I like in BlacKkKlansman, you wouldn't have to see it.  And you really should go and see it.  It was smart. What else are you going to go out and see Octogenarian Secret Agents accepting impossible missions? If you're woke, you have to see this movie.  If you're not, you may well be afterwards.  You find yourself shaking your head and kissing your teeth at the historically consistent statements made in this Civil Rights Era- based film that are astoundingly relevant and echoed over, and over again today.  Stop me when this sounds familiar, kkk/white supremacist rallies in major towns, shouts of "America First" by idiots who think they're losing "their" country... There were some people that were visibly uncomfortable in that Brooklyn theater when they showed the Charlottesville footage in a clear juxtaposition of the fictionalized kkk versus the neo-nazis who showed up in Virginia last year.  That's the sign of a good movie people are disturbed by the fact that reality is just as bad as the fiction.  So, to the critics of BlacKkKlansman, I say - STFU ya might learn something.

No, it's not perfect.  But it is really good.  Really good.

IMTHATDUDE gives BlacKkKlansman: 4 

RATING SYSTEM:
5 = You should be about halfway to the theatre by now… Well… GET! 
4 = Definitely worth the bread. Niiice.
3 = I won’t cuss anybody out and demand my paper back.
2 = Somewhere SOUTH of under-whelmed./I know it has a pulse, but…
1 = Not a good look. They played me AND I played myself.

ASIDE:  Of course, this whole film had me thinking of this classic Chappelle joint -

Ocean's 8

I'm a fan of the original Oceans 11 (the one with Sammy Davis, Jr., Dean Martin, and Sinatra) and the reboot with Clooney and Brad Pitt.  Now, I'm a fan of Ocean's 8... well, I'm more a fan of the concept of Ocean's 8.  Don't get me wrong, it was pretty good, but it was also entirely too predictable.  Aside from that, it was a good introduction to this Ocean's crew of thieves and it was exceptionally entertaining.  Sometimes (with how many movies I've watched, critiqued, analyzed, and fanboy'd) I get bogged down and miss the forest for the trees... I ran the risk of doing that here, but fortunately the woman I was with kept that from happening - she was more exuberant about the little things than I was - wait... what I mean to say is that she was more excited about things like the casting and discovering what I thought were thinly veiled plot twists than I was.  Ocean's 8 is the first real date movie I've enjoyed in some years.  

SIDE NOTE: In other news... Rihanna is arguably the sexiest woman breathing right now (with only Lupita Nyongo #WakandaForever challenging her)… no disrespect to my lovely date (but I can't really respect her opinion since she went out with me and is in love with Alex Rodriguez...?).

VITALS 

Gary Ross (Free State of Jones, The Hunger Games) - Director (Free State of Jones, The Hunger Games)

Gary Ross (Free State of Jones, The Hunger Games) & Olivia Milch (Dude) - Writers

Sandra Bullock - Debbie Ocean

Cate Blanchett - Lou

Anne Hathaway - Daphne Kluger

Rihanna - Nine Ball

Helena Bonham Carter - Rose Weil

Sarah Paulson - Tammy

Awkwafina - Constance

Mindy Kaling - Amita

James Corden - Insurance Investigator

Richard Armitage - Claude Becker 

IF YOU MUST KNOW

(SPOILER ALERT)

Debbie Ocean is out of prison on parole (see Ocean's 11) and she’s been plotting her next job every minute she spent in the hole.  That’s the first connection we have with Danny Ocean (Ocean’s 11).  We quickly find out after she gets out that Danny’s no dead - maybe.  Danny’s little sister and she has mapped out everything down to the kind of crew that she needs pull off a job that will bring in so much money, they should never need to pull another job again… at least, not until Ocean’s 9 – and I hope they find a way to fit in Julia Roberts. 

First, Debbie seeks out her old ace, Lou (Blanchett) who is basically the Rusty (Brad Pitt) of the crew.  Lou is the one who compiles the talent and helps Debbie figure out the logistics of her high-handed plan to rob the MET Gala for the great gobs of jewels that the celebs and celebutants.  Then, they go out and solicit the talents of old friends (some semi-retired, some otherwise occupied) and new friends - all of whom are enticed by the idea of either working with Ocean and Lou or by the value of the loot to be divvied up at the end of the heist.

Long story, slightly shortened - everybody they look for is in.  They have a hick-up here and there (most of which were so minor as to be unworthy of mention) and Ocean (just like her brother, Danny) has a side mission attached to this jewelry heist; unlike Danny, she is working an angle to screw over the guy who snitched on her and broke her heart, Claude Becker (Armitage).

The heist happens, shenanigans ensue, and Debbie Ocean's 8 walk away with plenty of booty to spare.  See what I did there?

Aside from the cute-siness of the tagline "Every con has its pros," the biggest problem I have with this movie is that there is only one twist that is not predictable as hell and even that twist is relatively meaningless.  I'm not a complete bastard, so I won't tell you what it is, but let's just say the payoff for this particular twist doesn't really make much of a difference to me.  Maybe it's a function of the fact that this is officially the fifth Ocean's '#' movie and after a certain point, you kinda get it.  Ocean plans caper, Ocean gets crew together, crew makes Ocean's idea into a plan, crew's plan works despite Ocean, Ocean's crew walks away scot-free with a crap load of loot.  

Now, like I said, I was fortunate to go see this with a particularly savvy woman (besides, I am too old to be hanging out with dummies) who summed it up pretty well… Ocean's 8 is fun and it has “all my favorite people in it” – well, it may have all of her favorite people, but definitely multiple of my favorite female actors are in it.  Helena Bonham Carter, Cate Blanchett, Sandra Bullock, Anne Hathaway, and the magnificent Sarah Paulson.  I was missing Julia Roberts, Meryl Streep, Nicole Beharie, Zoe Saldana, and the incomparable Lupita in this flick - if they added 2 or more of these women, I would have been there twice on opening night day.

Not exactly groundbreaking or as slick and twisty as any of the Clooney Ocean's movies, but it was solid.  It was a great date movie, light and entertaining with a talented cast. I definitely detected a few Thomas Crown Affair-type nods (either one McQueen or Brosnan).  Good enough to watch again - when it comes out on one of those streaming services.  And, in my humble nerdy opinion... it was at least as good as Avengers: Infinity War (Pt. I) - snap that sh#, Thanos!

PS: Did I mention she's in this too (even though they tried to make her not sexy)...

IMTHATDUDE gives Ocean's 8: 4 

RATING SYSTEM:
5 = You should be about halfway to the theatre by now… Well… GET! 
4 = Definitely worth the bread. Niiice.
3 = I won’t cuss anybody out and demand my paper back.
2 = Somewhere SOUTH of under-whelmed./I know it has a pulse, but…
1 = Not a good look. They played me AND I played myself.

Black Panther

Way back in July 2017 (before anybody outside of the studio execs saw more than the teaser trailer) I said that I expect Black Panther to be "effing dope!"  I may have been wrong.  It was better than that. It was SOFA.KING.DOPE it's not even fair.  It's been a long time coming... Black Panther is the first comic book movie/superhero film that actually means something AND it is absolutely top notch in terms of its quality.  It isn't "good... for a black movie" or "good, but it should have been better if they had blah blah blah..." It is legit better than best Iron Man (I) movie, better than the best Avengers (I) movie, better than the best Captain America (Civil War) better than Wonder Woman (which was the best DC movie in recent decades), and it kicks Deadpool in the nuts - and these are all movies I like!

Black Panther was stellar from the dead on perfect casting to the action and comedic writing.  The only thing that gave me pause prior to seeing it was whether the script would hold up to the expectations from Captain America: Civil War.

Shout out to Stan Lee and Jack Kirby for creating a black superhero like this back in the 1960s.  I wont dig too deep into their motivation for creating Black Panther, I'll just say... good call.  #WAKANDAFOREVER  Fast forward and we find Ta Nehisi Coates (a journalist and one of the most influential black authors of our time) has a graphic novel version of the re-imagined Black Panther that I suggest real fans pick up - it's a good read.  It was a little bit of concern to me that the names attached to this movie were relative newcomers to the big screen.  Ryan Coogler, the director, who had done Creed and Fruitvale Station; both exceptional films, but nothing on this scale. It was also written by Coogler and another newbie to this type of film, Joe Robert Cole.  Nothing they did was this kind of action and they were super dramatic.  Not to mention...  they're both BLACK!  Say whuh?  Yup.  A predominantly black cast, black writers, black director, and it wasn't a movie about sports, civil rights, or big mama... and there's nobody in the major credits whose name rhymes with Pyler Terry?  Already sounding awesome to me.

Damn near every performance is a breakout performance.  I would go so far even as to say that this should be nominated for multiple Oscars next year.  As much as I think the Oscars ain't all they're cracked up to be (otherwise Denzel would have won for Roman J. Israel and Malcolm X) - hence the birth of the Shammi Awards.

VITALS

Ryan Coogler (Creed, Fruitvale Station) - Director
Ryan Coogler (Creed, Fruitvale Station) and Joe Robert Cole (American Crime Story) - Writers
Chadwick Boseman (42, Marshall) - T'Challa/Black Panther
Michael B Jordan (Creed, Fruitvale Station) - Killmonger
Lupita Nyongo (12 Years a Slave, ) - Nakia
Danai Gurira (The Walking Dead, ) - General Okoye
Letitia Wright (The Commuter, and Black Mirror) - Shuri
Daniel Kaluuya (Get Out, ) - W'Kabi
Sterling K. Brown (This is Us, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, Marshall) - N'Jobu
Matin Freeman (The Hobbit, TV's Sherlock) - Agent Ross
Angela Bassett (Notorious, This Means War) - Queen Ramonda
Winston Davis (Person of Interest, Modern Family)- M'Baku
Florence Kasumba (Captain America: Civil War, Wonder Woman) - Ayo
Cast also includes Forrest Whittaker, John Kani, and Andi Serkis

WARNING: THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN A SPOILER OR TWO  - READING FURTHER MAY NOT SUIT SOME

IF YOU MUST KNOW

King T'Chaka is dead and Prince T'Challa (Boseman) must return home to be crowned king of Wakanda, a nation believed to be a "third-world" country made up of farmers and tribes of little significance.  What should be an easy ascension to the throne becomes complicated by rivals in the time of political uncertainty - sounding familiar... if not, don't worry, you'll get there.  First, the prince is challenged by the leader of another tribe who believes T'Challa to be weak and unworthy of the mantle of Black Panther.  By way of brief background, the Black Panther is the protector and leader of Wakanda.  This title is not one that is merely bestowed based upon lineage, but there is an opportunity for worthy warriors to challenge the putative king for his spot and the Black Panther mantle - kind of like what Diddy tried to do with his show The Four. 

T'Challa has the powers of the Black Panther (heightened strength, reflexes, healing power, stamina - you know... Black people stuff) stripped away to from him to face this warrior-challenger on equal footing.  Of course he wins, but then he receives advice that all good leaders should adhere to - surround yourself with good people that you trust. So, he does precisely that.  He has the faithful General Okoye (Gurira) of the Dora Milaje, the warrior women sworn to protect the throne that make the Amazons in Wonder Woman look like Girl Scouts, mom dukes (Bassett), and bae - Nakia (Nyongo).  Interestingly, he didn't really surround himself with a bunch of dudes.  Bruh... neither would I, but we'll have to delve into that at another time.  ASIDE: The sheer number of beautiful black women in this one film does make you think, how come you don't get more of them in movies that aren't written and directed by black/brown folks?  I mean, com'on son.  These women looked good with MY haircut.  They gotta be poppin.

WARNING: SPOILER ALERT - READING FURTHER MAY NOT SUIT SOME

No sooner than he handles his first test does the next adversary step up; this one is much more unexpected than the first and it hits a lot closer to home.  This test of his leadership also comes as he also has to face internal questions of his own worthiness.

In every hero film, there's the all is lost moment.  Of course, the stakes have to be really high - not just a loss of a title, or his powers; there has to be more at risk.  If T'Challa loses this second challenge to his position, it means that he conceded or he's dead.  And either way, it means he doesn't get to do this with fam anymore:  

Anybody with a special handshake and salute will tell you that if anybody messes with that, that person is really violating and should expect trouble.  But no, that's not the only thing at risk here if T'Challa loses.  If his new nemesis, Killmonger (Jordan) happens to be successful, the once reclusive nation of Wakanda will change forever.  Change is good if you're talking Obama, but not so good if you're talking Orange grown man babies from Queens - ya dig?  Killmonger will move Wakanda into age of war and interventionism (taking their knowledge, resources, and technology to the outside world for the first time) the likes of which they have never seen before.

Ordinarily, there's enough about a movie that tickles my sardonic compulsion to clown it or belittle pieces of it.  Black Panther had a couple of moments that could have pushed it right into that realm if they lingered just a hair too long or appeared more frequently.  Fortunately, that did not happen.  Although a couple of my Blue and White Brothers had a couple of solid jokes about Keenan Ivory Wayans popping up in the movies shouting "Message!"
Truth - this movie could not be better timed or executed.  The kingdom of Wakanda is the most technologically advanced nation in the world and richer than the outside world knows.  The creators of the comic and the writers of the movie could not have anticipated comments that would be made by 45 about "s-hole" countries in Africa, Latin America, or the Caribbean when they were writing the script.  

There's more to Black Panther than just a bunch of fights and special effects - everything from the barking Jabari tribe giving CIA Agent Ross (Freeman) the business when he tries to speak in their presence, to Killmonger's "hey, Auntie," to Shuri referring to Agent Ross as a "colonizer" in the way brown women can say things playfully whilst cutting your throat (gotta love that), to the Dora Milaje busting that a$$.


Killmonger is an excellent villain.  He's a madman with a vision and a hell of a vendetta. More importantly, his mission is something that kind of makes sense and even resonates with people like me.  He wasn't trying to watch the world burn like most of those ridiculous Bond villains.  He was trying to give a forgotten people a fighting chance to flip the tables on a world that has oppressed them for hundreds of years.  You can almost cosign him.  Villains that have twisted good intentions just enough to be sinister and if they happen to match up well against the hero... that's a great villain.  Black Panther vs. Killmonger made for exceptional dramatic interplay against the backdrop of all of the socio-political issues that this movie addressed at times with a little tongue and cheek approach.  The end result is that there's really nothing to pick apart with this movie.  I'm doing my best not to give away the story and the meanings behind some of the more important lines in the movie that had this woman next to me say "Yassss" every ten seconds. Aside: Yes, she was stereotypical, but the white girl in the row behind me wasn't much better.  I could have used the Dora Milaje at iPic.  

So what the Wakandan accents were all over the place for a couple of folks; there's a bunch of tribes that make up the kingdom, maybe it's like having a Brooklyn accent vs a Jersey accent.  So what there were clear messages being dropped in this flick; more movies need to do the same.  In fact, all hero movies should be about that something important.  So what they tokenized the white dudes; it's about damned time.  This movie is culturally relevant without being a strictly FUBU.  It is pro-feminism (see Shuri, the General Okoye, and Nakia).  It's anti-empirical.  On top of all of that, it was a hell of a lot of fun to watch.  I'm looking forward to seeing it again... and then at least one more time after that.

WARNING: THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN A SPOILER OR TWO  - READING FURTHER MAY NOT SUIT SOME

There were two post-credit scenes.  

The first post-credit scene was very much a throwback to the movie that launched this whole MCU takeover, Iron Man.  It was so obvious it had to be an homage.   Now King T'Challa has a Tony Stark moment of his own.  

The second post-credit scene was not really worth staying for unless you are a real fan or movie nerd, like me.  The second post-credit scene just lets you see that one of the pivotal characters from Captain America: Civil War ended up in Wakanda.  No biggie... yet.

Black Panther comics have been around since the 60s which makes pictures like this all the more poignant - 

IMTHATDUDE gives Black Panther: 5 

RATING SYSTEM:

5 = You should be about halfway to the theatre by now… Well… GET!

4 = Definitely worth the bread. Niiice.

3 = I won’t cuss anybody out and demand my paper back.

2 = Somewhere SOUTH of under-whelmed./I know it has a pulse, but…

1 = Not a good look. They played me AND I played myself.