Critically acclaimed director Kathryn Bigelow is back in theatres this week with Detroit. This film centers around the events that take place at the Algier's Motel, during a night of the Detroit riots in 1967.
The film opens with a hand-drawn series of scenes telling the audience the story that has led up to the riots. These scenes are very helpful in setting up the story at hand. After those couple of scenes we are shown a bunch of scenes from the actual riots. Actual footage from the riots and scenes filmed by Bigelow are blended together very well to give the audience a feel of the racial tensions at the time and the terrible situation Detroit is in. We are then introduced to Larry, played by Algee Smith, a singer for The Dramatics. Larry and his band are forced to leave a venue they're performing at due to the riots and are unable to get home, so Larry and his pal Fred stop and spend the night at the Algier's Motel. This is where the real story comes into play. Larry and Fred meet up with a pair of white girls, played by Hannah Murray and Kaitlyn Dever. Larry and Fred follow the girls to another group of guys led by Carl, played by Jason Mitchell. Carl jokingly fires a starter pistol at a group of police and military a couple streets away and all of the sudden a group of police has everyone in the building lined up against a wall, where they are beaten, mistreated, and some killed by racist policemen.
The three police officers that mistreat all the "suspects" are played by Will Poulter, Jack Reynor, and Ben O'Toole. All three are despicable men that have no regard for civil rights. There isn't a black man in the motel that they don't beat and yell at, including a war veteran played by Anthony Mackie. They beat and mistreat both of the women, ripping off one of their dresses at one point. All three, especially Poulter's character, are absolutely filthy people, but the performances by each of them are fantastic. Algee Smith's character is the one I'd say is the lead in the film, as his story is more drawn out than most. Smith brings a lot of deep emotion to the role and his singing voice is stellar. The other actor with a more meaty role is John Boyega who plays a black security guard that gets caught up in everything at the Algier's. His role is important as it shows the racial tension between people fighting for the same cause, as both he and the police are trying to prevent the riots. As for the rest of the supporting cast, Anthony Mackie, Jacob Lattimore, and Jason Mitchell all have smaller roles but make the most of them, each leaving a large impact. Murray and Dever also perform very well and are crucial in showing that even just being associated with black people at this time could lead to mistreatment from officers.
By far my favourite thing about this movie is the tension during the scenes in the Algier's. Despite the scene being very long and drawn out it stays consistently tense as the audience is unsure of what will happen to all the characters. The pacing is also very consistent as once things get going the pace never slows down until the night is over.
Bigelow's work in the film is incredible. As I said before the film stays consistently tense, and all the scenes of violence and rioting are very well shot. Some shots in the movie are slightly shaky and I found that it added to the overall tone of the darker part of Detroit. There are also a lot of close ups which do a lot in showing the deep emotion and fear that the cast is bringing to their roles. I think Bigelow and the writers also did a very good job of showing that not all white people in this situation were racist. Obviously the trio of police officers were terrible but there are men above them that try to fight for the civil rights of the black men in the situation. The two girls also show that there are people in the city that are accepting. I'd also say that most of the military personnel shown are more racially sensitive as a few bond with Boyega over coffee and one helps some men out of the motel. There is however a scene where a military officer decides to not do anything so that he doesn't need to deal with any civil rights issues, which goes again to show that there are clearly people that don't care.
There is only really one negative I have with this film. After the events at the Algier's the movie tries to wrap stuff up in what seems like a lackluster ending. Things pick right back up however, as courtroom drama ensues as to what the fate of the three officers will be. But after that there is more a a weak wrap up that causes the film to end blandly. I think ending things at the end of the courtroom drama would allow the film to end on a high note where tensions are high. There also isn't a lot of character development with anyone other than Larry but in a film like this, a lack of development isn't a huge issue to me, especially when the event itself is so well developed.
I heard a woman complaining about watching men get beaten for and hour while I was leaving the theatre. If that is something you don't want to see I don't think this is the movie for you. But if you want to see a tense, drawn-out thrill ride detailing one of the most infamous moments in US history then I'd definitely suggest Detroit as a must-see.
Rating: 4.6/5
Written by Matt McKenzie
The film opens with a hand-drawn series of scenes telling the audience the story that has led up to the riots. These scenes are very helpful in setting up the story at hand. After those couple of scenes we are shown a bunch of scenes from the actual riots. Actual footage from the riots and scenes filmed by Bigelow are blended together very well to give the audience a feel of the racial tensions at the time and the terrible situation Detroit is in. We are then introduced to Larry, played by Algee Smith, a singer for The Dramatics. Larry and his band are forced to leave a venue they're performing at due to the riots and are unable to get home, so Larry and his pal Fred stop and spend the night at the Algier's Motel. This is where the real story comes into play. Larry and Fred meet up with a pair of white girls, played by Hannah Murray and Kaitlyn Dever. Larry and Fred follow the girls to another group of guys led by Carl, played by Jason Mitchell. Carl jokingly fires a starter pistol at a group of police and military a couple streets away and all of the sudden a group of police has everyone in the building lined up against a wall, where they are beaten, mistreated, and some killed by racist policemen.
The three police officers that mistreat all the "suspects" are played by Will Poulter, Jack Reynor, and Ben O'Toole. All three are despicable men that have no regard for civil rights. There isn't a black man in the motel that they don't beat and yell at, including a war veteran played by Anthony Mackie. They beat and mistreat both of the women, ripping off one of their dresses at one point. All three, especially Poulter's character, are absolutely filthy people, but the performances by each of them are fantastic. Algee Smith's character is the one I'd say is the lead in the film, as his story is more drawn out than most. Smith brings a lot of deep emotion to the role and his singing voice is stellar. The other actor with a more meaty role is John Boyega who plays a black security guard that gets caught up in everything at the Algier's. His role is important as it shows the racial tension between people fighting for the same cause, as both he and the police are trying to prevent the riots. As for the rest of the supporting cast, Anthony Mackie, Jacob Lattimore, and Jason Mitchell all have smaller roles but make the most of them, each leaving a large impact. Murray and Dever also perform very well and are crucial in showing that even just being associated with black people at this time could lead to mistreatment from officers.
By far my favourite thing about this movie is the tension during the scenes in the Algier's. Despite the scene being very long and drawn out it stays consistently tense as the audience is unsure of what will happen to all the characters. The pacing is also very consistent as once things get going the pace never slows down until the night is over.
Bigelow's work in the film is incredible. As I said before the film stays consistently tense, and all the scenes of violence and rioting are very well shot. Some shots in the movie are slightly shaky and I found that it added to the overall tone of the darker part of Detroit. There are also a lot of close ups which do a lot in showing the deep emotion and fear that the cast is bringing to their roles. I think Bigelow and the writers also did a very good job of showing that not all white people in this situation were racist. Obviously the trio of police officers were terrible but there are men above them that try to fight for the civil rights of the black men in the situation. The two girls also show that there are people in the city that are accepting. I'd also say that most of the military personnel shown are more racially sensitive as a few bond with Boyega over coffee and one helps some men out of the motel. There is however a scene where a military officer decides to not do anything so that he doesn't need to deal with any civil rights issues, which goes again to show that there are clearly people that don't care.
There is only really one negative I have with this film. After the events at the Algier's the movie tries to wrap stuff up in what seems like a lackluster ending. Things pick right back up however, as courtroom drama ensues as to what the fate of the three officers will be. But after that there is more a a weak wrap up that causes the film to end blandly. I think ending things at the end of the courtroom drama would allow the film to end on a high note where tensions are high. There also isn't a lot of character development with anyone other than Larry but in a film like this, a lack of development isn't a huge issue to me, especially when the event itself is so well developed.
I heard a woman complaining about watching men get beaten for and hour while I was leaving the theatre. If that is something you don't want to see I don't think this is the movie for you. But if you want to see a tense, drawn-out thrill ride detailing one of the most infamous moments in US history then I'd definitely suggest Detroit as a must-see.
Rating: 4.6/5
Written by Matt McKenzie
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