TL;DR: Regina King makes a strong directorial debut in her existential fanfiction of four great African American icons who discuss the nuances of being Black and successful in America in the 1960s. Though the story itself is simple enough, the film is carried by the dialogue and its performances, asking the viewer to contemplate seriously profound questions that will linger with you long after the movie ends.
You may know Regina King from her illustrious acting career. From Boyz n the Hood to Watchmen, though King has been gracing us with her presence on the big and little screens for decades, "One Night in Miami" marks her directorial debut behind the camera and makes a strong case for more diversity in production leadership roles.
The film centers upon the night of February 25th, 1964--the same night in which Mohammed Ali (then known as Cassius Clay) beat Sonny Liston for the 1st time in title fight in Miami Beach. The film plays like half philosophical musing and half fanfiction and is mostly comprised of a fictional meeting between Malcolm X, Sam Cooke, Jim Brown, and Cassius Clay at the Hampton House hotel.
I have to admit that based on the premise of the film alone, I was skeptical. I'm not usually a fan of "talking head" pictures, but "One Night in Miami" is engaging enough throughout that I had no problem keeping interest.
The dialogue feels real and the performances are spot on. In particular, Eli Goree and Kingsley Ben-Adir's portrayals of Cassius Clay and Malcolm X, respectively, are outstanding. The accent work that Goree and Ben-Adir bring to the roles captures the tone, timbre, and rhythmn of the real-life figures so much so that if you close your eyes, you could almost swear it was them speaking.
The film opens with Jim Brown, the NFL star, making a visit to an old friend, Mr. Carlton. His daughter is surprised and exicted to receive Brown at the front porch. Despite a conversation that illustrates the depth of their longtime friendship, when Brown requests to come inside at the end of their meeting, Mr. Carlton replies unabashedly that Brown knows that "niggers aren't allowed inside". It's a shocking, but revealing moment in how African Americans were treated not so long ago in America--that no matter how successful they become or how close they seem to be, there was always a line of oppression drawn in the sand that delineated what 2nd class citizens they were and in a lot of ways, still are. It is this meeting that sets the tone for the film and the conversations between the historical figures portrayed.
Cooke and Ali meet up Malcolm X at his room in the Hampton House for a celebration of Muhammed's unexpected victory. While the rest of the men are expecting a party with women and booze, they are instead met with a pious Malcolm X by himself and though he assures his peers that he too "knows how to have a good time", the interaction that ensues and, in fact, takes up most of the duration of the story, is anything but lighthearted.
Malcolm instead chooses to confront Cook on his role in empowering other African Americans as well as the dumbing down of his act to placate white audiences, almost equating him to a sort of Uncle Tom or performing monkey. Cook counters that he plays that role in order to get his music in front of audiences that empower him to be successful and help other black artists through his financial success. Malcolm is not satisfied and claims that while that is all fine and dandy, he points out that the shows that Cook performs for white and black audiences are completely different in terms of content. Cook counters that while Malcolm is able to speak his mind, his harsh vitriol and generalized hate for white people is too broad and alienates too many to be effective. While Malcolm's strategy is in the unification of African Americans, Cook's method is to build allies in the white community that can allow him the platform for his voice and his message. Malcolm acknowledges that while Cook has the platform, he has done injustice to it by not using it more proactively to advance the freedoms of most African Americans who aren't in as favorable a position as he. "What message is that exactly?" Malcolm asks, recognizing Cook's success, but says that he has plateaued based on content of his songs. In an effort to encourage Cook to modify the content of his songs to reflect real struggles and issues in black society, He cites Bob Dylan's "Candle in the Wind" as being #1 on the music charts while Cook has never cracked the top 10 as an example of how you can talk about oppression and still identify with a mass audience. Malcolm points out that the irony is not lost on him that the fact that Bob Dylan, a white man from Missouri who knows nothing of real racial struggle, has made a more successful song that speaks to the oppression of the little guy more than Sam has, despite Cook actually being in a position of opression based on the color of his skin.
If I go into further detail, I might spoil the ending for you, but I will say this: One Night in Miami might be a slow burn, but the payout is worth it. After their conversation, all 4 men part ways but not unchanged. The final act attempts to tie the influence of the conversation they had on what these men did immediately after and the result is tremendously powerful. For anyone struggling with understanding the plight of the African American struggle in America, this movie is a must-watch. With the critical acclaim the movie is receiving, I am excited to see what King is working on next. Although I am not black, the message of the film resonates with me as a minority in America. Though it takes a real and sober view of the discrimination blacks and minorities in general have faced in America, it remains optimistic in the change that is to come. "One Night in America" adds itself to the list of growing films that represent that change. Hopefully the success of this film reminds Hollywood of the commercial viability of telling minority stories, in terms that often have been deemed too blunt for the industry to spotlight in the past.
Enjoyability: 8
Story: 6
Acting/Directing: 9
Form (production value): 7.5
Overall: 7.625 out of 10
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