ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI
Rated: R
Rated: R
Release Date: January 15, 2021
Director: Regina King
Stars: Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree, Leslie Odom, Jr., Aldis Hodge
Plot: Malcolm X, Sam Cooke, Jim Brown, and the soon-to-be Muhammed Ali spend an evening debating and discussing their part in the civil rights movement
Clint Says: See this movie as soon as you can
This film is a tale of two halves. The first 15 minutes are incredible. Especially the introduction of Jim Brown. It is one of the more powerful and poignant scenes you will see in a movie this year. Unfortunately, the rest of the first half is really quite boring. Nothing exciting happens, the four friends are hanging out with each other, which is neat to see and contemplate, but there is no conflict, there is no action, and it feels like the story stalls out.
But then the second half of the film shows up to the party.
It is very rare for me to love a film so much that didn’t thrill me for about 45 minutes of it, but the rest of the movie is so good that it nearly made my top 10 movies of the year list. There is so much happening in the second half , so many emotional moments, and such powerful dialogue that the entire film is thoroughly redeemed.
The acting is some of the best we’ve seen this year. Leslie Odom, Jr. deserves a supporting actor nomination for his portrayal of Sam Cooke. He also co-wrote the song “Speak Now,” with Sam Ashworth. It has a very good chance of winning the Oscar for Best Song.
Perhaps the most incredible thing about this film is the performance of Kingsley Ben-Adir. He plays the role of Malcolm X perfectly. You almost feel like you are watching the real man on screen. That is incredible enough, but the truly shocking thing about it is that Ben-Adir was chosen for the role only two weeks before they started shooting the film. And because the shooting schedule was so tight, there were many times where they didn’t even get to rehearse their lines on scene.
Give this one a watch this weekend. You won’t be disappointed. In fact, you might discover one of your favorite movies of the year.
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THE MARKSMAN
Rated: PG-13
Release Date: January 15, 2021
Director: Robert Lorenz
Stars: Liam Neeson, Jacob Perez, Juan Pablo Raba, Katheryn Winnick
Plot: A rancher must help a boy escape a Mexican drug cartel
Clint Says: Wait for the digital release
I know the question you are all wanting answered. Does Liam Neeson have a certain set of skills in this movie? Of course he does! He’s a one-man army versus the baddest of the bad in the Mexican Cartel.
Now, if that is your only reason for wanting to see this movie, then go for it. Grab your popcorn, candy, and drink and enjoy. If you like that stuff, but you also want a smart film, well…this is not the movie you are looking for.
While this flick is entertaining and somewhat suspenseful. it is also filled with about 20 moments where you will find yourself saying, “Why did they do that instead of this obvious thing?” There are more holes in this plot than there are holes in Lim Neeson’s truck after the Cartel shoots it up. (Not a spoiler. We all know that happens in every movie he’s in).
If you are in the mood for a good action flick, check your brain at the door and have a fun time. If you are hoping to discuss this film over coffee, you may want to buy a small.
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MLK/FBI
Rated: Not Rated
Release Date: January 15, 2021
Director: Sam Pollard
Stars: Martin Luther King, James Comey, Beverly Gage
Plot: A documentary about the FBI’s surveillance of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. using newly declassified files
Clint Says: Worth a watch if you don’t know a lot about the players
This is a documentary that feels like it could have been something so much better than it is. It is slow, making it feel like it drags on. It is poorly edited, making it nearly impossible at times to understand the point trying to be made. It feels like they found a bunch of important statements and just put them all together whether they belonged together or not.
The other odd thing about this film is the music. About every 10 minutes there is an annoyingly loud drum/bass thing going on that feels nothing like the tone of the documentary. It just beats at your brain, completely taking you out of the story for minutes at a time.
Finally, I was expecting to see and hear things I had never seen and heard before. That didn’t happen. This was all supposed to be fresh information from newly declassified documents, but almost everything in this film has been floating around for many years. There were very few moments where I learned something new about MLK or the FBI.
If you don’t know much about MLK or his dealings with the FBI this may be a good start, but if you already have a good working knowledge of both this film will bore you.
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For more information and past reviews go to www.clintsmoviereviews.com.
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