BlacKkKlansman is an astonishing and often ridiculous true story that is terrifyingly relevant today
BlacKkKlansman begins with a clip of Gone with the Wind where Vivian Leigh as Scarlett O’Hara navigates thousands of bodies during the aftermath of a Civil War battle. Then, it abruptly cuts to a Dr. Kennebrew Beaureguard (Alec Baldwin essentially assuming his SNL Trump persona) as he films—attempts to, at least—a PSA that explains why “scientifically” the white race is superior. It’s an off-kilter way to begin a movie that explores such a serious topic, but that’s just the way that Spike Lee operates. When Lee adds style to his films, it’s to also add substance. That’s what makes the film’s ending knock the breath out of you.
One of the highlights of the film is an early scene where Ron Stallworth (John David Washington)—he is the first black detective in the Colorado Springs Police Department—is assigned to infiltrate a rally where civil rights activist and leader Kwame Ture (Corey Hawkins with an incredible one-scene performance) is delivering a speech. Since it is his first real assignment—he was been working in the records room taking racists taunts mostly from Landers (Fred Weller)—Stallworth is the consummate professional.
In the speech, Ture emphasizes the importance of black pride in the fight for equality and the liberation of black people. “We have to stop being ashamed of being black. A broad nose, a thick lip and nappy hair is us and we are going to call that beautiful whether they like it or not,” he says. And all throughout his speech, images of the black faces that are listening intently with fire and hope in their eyes fade in and out of frame. It’s thrilling and emotional. Stallworth seems to be affected by the speech too. Most movies are lucky to have one of those moments. Lee is able to pull off several in BlacKkKlansman.
Eventually, Stallworth is promoted to the intelligence division where he responds to an ad in the paper promotion the Ku Klux Klan. He calls the number listed and speaks with Walter Breachway (Ryan Eggold), the local president of the chapter. Stallworth is sure to list every race, religion, and people that the KKK despise and using their colorful language to describe each group. Impressed, Breachway invites Stallworth to meet. Of course, he can’t actually meet him, which is why Flip Zimmerman (Adam Driver) steps in as the physical embodiment of Stallworth.
“Stop running away from being black.”
— Kuame Ture (Corey Hawkins), BlacKkKlansman
Whenever we see the Klan members, Lee portrays them like they are in a minstrel show. Some of what happens is slapstick and darkly hilarious. At one point, Felix (Jasper Pääkkönen), one of the more aggressive members of the chapter, forces Zimmerman—who is still posing as Stallworth and slowly making bonds in the group—to take a lie detector test. The ensuing scene between the two is some of the most sharply hilarious dialogue I’ve seen in a film all year. Another member, Ivanhoe (Paul Walter Hauser), might as well be wearing a dunce cap.
However, the threat they pose is not underplayed. Felix, along with his wife Connie (Ashlie Atkinson, a standout), are planning an attack on the Black Student Union led by Stallworth’s love interest and activist Patrice (a criminally underused Laura Harrier from Spider-Man: Homecoming). Elsewhere, the Grand Wizard of the Klan David Duke (Topher Grace)—eventually Stallworth has several conversations with him and Zimmerman eventually meets—has political ambitions that terrifyingly mirrors our world today too closely. As one character puts it, it’s “another way to sell hate.”
However, Lee also explores this true story based on Ron Stallworth’s memoir—he took creative liberties in several places—on the character level. Specifically, he explores identity as Stallworth tries to figure out how to both be a black man and a cop—a fact that Patrice finds hard to get over—and Zimmerman attempts to accept his Jewish heritage.
In the end, BlacKkKlansman is greater than the sum of its parts. Though it comes in at a robust 135 minutes, I almost wish it was a little bit longer to tie up some of the plot threads that we pick up and drop along the way. However, the power of the story can’t be underplayed and that’s all thanks to Spike Lee’s masterful execution and knockout performances by Washington and Driver—both Oscar-worthy. After the truly stunning final sequence, an upside down American flag appears before fading to black and white. It’s Lee’s way of saying—and what one character says at a point in the film—”why don’t you wake up?”
BlacKkKlansman is available to rent or buy on Amazon!
Karl’s rating:
Hey, I'm Karl, founder and film critic at Smash Cut. I started Smash Cut in 2014 to share my love of movies and give a perspective I haven't yet seen represented. I'm also an editor at The New York Times, a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, and a member of the Online Film Critics Society.