By Paul Hall
In 1967, as race riots swept the nation, Detroit found itself in the middle of a war zone. After a police raid on an illegal club, the fuse was lit and African-American men took to the streets to fight back against the predominantly white police force. The new film Detroit, from Academy Award-winning director Kathryn Bigelow, focuses on the incidents that followed.
Every battle has a number of both good and bad people involved. Unfortunately, in many cases, it’s the bad who have the loudest voice and the bad who ultimately are heard.
Keeping the peace in Detroit amid rampant looting is an overtaxed and stressed out police force. That police force uses cloudy judgement at best, and overt gestapo tactics at worst, to keep the population in line. Looters in the streets are attacking their own neighborhoods and stealing from those who work hard to be a part of the community.
When Officer Krauss (Will Poulter) and his partner arrive at the Algiers Motel, they are searching for a sniper believed to be in the building. Supported by Michigan State Police and the National Guard, the officers proceed to “interrogate” those in the facility to find the gun that was alleged to be there. I use the term interrogate in quotes because this was nothing short of coercion with violence as Detroit lays it out. This was a vicious and senseless assault on all those involved.
As a director, Bigelow raises the bar for every project she is involved in. I believe she should be referred to with the same reverence as Spielberg, Howard and Scorsese. She’s earned it and I awaited this film with anticipation as I did Christmas as a young boy. And for the most part, I wasn’t let down.
For two thirds of the film I found myself in knots, waiting to see what horror was lying around the corner. Just when you thought the officers couldn’t do something worse, you were lashed back to reality. And Bigelow does a wonderful job of making it clear that there were good people and bad people here, of all races. It never took the color of one’s skin to be mortified by the incidents that took place before, during and after the evening at the Algiers.
One recognizes Anthony Mackie and John Boyega along with Algee Smith and Jacob Latimore, but we never let one of their personalities become larger than the film as a whole. And that may result in some of my criticism of the film. I never felt a true involvement from Boyega’s Melvin Dismukes, yet I wanted to. And I certainly felt, at the resolution of the incident at the Algiers, much of the energy wave that we had been riding crashed. It was an ending that I felt a bit let down by as I exited the theater.
And then there is Poulter. What an amazing performance as the bad lightning rod of the police force and the interrogation crew at the Algiers. He proceeded to draw a disgust for his character that made me need to keep reminding myself it was only an acting performance. And it is a really good one at that.
The events at the Algiers that take place in Detroit needed to be shared. They are recounted in such a way that is relatable to many in today’s society and I just hope we are not bound to repeat some of our past failures and shortcomings. It’s an amazing ride that will have you holding on for dear life and wondering just how we as people can become a better society for all.
Paul’s Grade: B
Detroit
Rated R
Stars: John Boyega, Will Poulter, Algee Smith
Director: Kathryn Bigelow
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