The movie
Judas and the Black Messiah
Daniel Kaluuya was the thoroughly deserving winner of the 2021 Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for his portrayal of Black Panther leader Fred Hampton, who was murdered by Chicago police at the behest of the FBI.
Length: 127 min
Country: Verenigde Staten
Language spoken: Engels
Language subtitles: Nederlands
Cast: Daniel Kaluuya, Lakeith Stanfield, Dominique Thorne, Jesse Plemons, Dominique Fishback, Ashton Sanders, Martin Sheen, Algee Smith, Darrell Britt-Gibson, Amari Cheatom, Caleb Eberhardt, Lil Rel Howery
Director: Shaka King
Release date: 2021
Description
Daniel Kaluuya was the thoroughly deserving winner of the 2021 Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for his portrayal of Black Panther leader Fred Hampton, who was murdered by Chicago police at the behest of the FBI. Just as good was LaKeith Stanfield—he was also nominated for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar—as Hampton’s head of security, Bill O’Neal, a former thief who agreed to go undercover for the FBI and infiltrate Hampton’s Panther cell. But there is no absolute good or evil in the worldview of co-writer and director Shaka King. He has fashioned a wonderfully detailed and thoroughly nuanced—not to mention gripping—drama, anchored by two mesmerizing performances that will stick with you for weeks.
‘Hampton was just 21 when he was killed in a police raid on Dec. 4, 1969. That’s not a spoiler, just history, and I’d argue that knowing his fate in advance is crucial to an appreciation of “Judas and the Black Messiah.” Though it plays at times like a crime thriller — with stakeouts and shootouts, chases and interrogations — the movie is better understood as a political tragedy. The script, by King and Will Berson, is layered with ethical snares and ideological paradoxes, and while King’s fast-paced direction doesn’t spare the suspense, it also makes room for sorrow, anger and even a measure of exhilaration.’—A.O. Scott, The New York Times
‘Hampton was just 21 when he was killed in a police raid on Dec. 4, 1969. That’s not a spoiler, just history, and I’d argue that knowing his fate in advance is crucial to an appreciation of “Judas and the Black Messiah.” Though it plays at times like a crime thriller — with stakeouts and shootouts, chases and interrogations — the movie is better understood as a political tragedy. The script, by King and Will Berson, is layered with ethical snares and ideological paradoxes, and while King’s fast-paced direction doesn’t spare the suspense, it also makes room for sorrow, anger and even a measure of exhilaration.’—A.O. Scott, The New York Times
