Saturday, March 27, 2021

Judas and the Black Messiah


This year we have two films set in the same 1960s era, The Trial of the Chicago 7 and this one, Judas and the Black Messiah - you should watch them both. Daniel Kaluuya (the dude from Get Out) won the Golden Globe for best supporting actor for his role as Black Panther founder, Fred Hampton. He's nominated for best actor in a leading role for an Oscar. Why the Globes nominated him for best supporting when he should have been nominated for lead remains a mystery. Fred is the messiah and Bill O'Neal (LaKeith Stanfield) is Judas - an undercover snitch for the FBI who infiltrated the Panthers as a way to weasel his way out of serving grand-theft -auto jail time. It's a true story and a crazy one at that. It makes for a great movie. And this is a great movie. The cast is phenomenal, the story is riveting, and the direction is spot on. It's reminiscent of such films as Goodfellas, Selma, and Donnie Brasco - I loved it; learned lots about the Panthers and Fred Hampton. It's one of the best films of 2021. Catch it on streaming services. 

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