Set in the late 1960s, this is the story of Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya), the leader of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party, and William "Bill" O'Neal (Lakeith Stanfield), a petty car thief who becomes an FBI informant to avoid going to prison and infiltrates the Party. As Bill slowly rises up the ranks, it is clear that the work of the Black Panthers is increasingly resonating with him, and while he thought he didn't have any political leanings, he does like these people and what they stand for. But as the FBI ramps up their efforts to destroy the Panthers, who they consider domestic terrorists, he is led down a path of treachery that will haunt him for the rest of his life.
This movie is excellent for a lot of reasons but number one is the casting. Daniel Kaluuya mentioned in an interview how he worked extensively with a dialect coach to nail Fred Hampton's speech patterns, and you can tell. His delivery is absolutely flawless. And as the eponymous Black Messiah of the film, he needs to deliver many rousing speeches, targeted to energize his audience and incite a revolution among the people. It's a phenomenal portrayal of the charisma and passion that made Hampton such an effective activist and showcases why the FBI were so worried about him. On the flip side, you have the far quieter but tense performance that Lakeith Stanfield has to deliver, as a man who is in constant fear for his life. He is quick-witted and manages to outfox the Panthers every time they have any doubts, but you can see the flash of fear in his eyes and the toll that this role is taking on him as time passes and these people start to become his friends. Jesse Plemons is perfectly cast as FBI Agent Roy Mitchell: he might be a nice guy to O'Neal but is completely morally ambiguous otherwise. He has fully drunk the FBI Kool-Aid and will stop at nothing to bring down Fred Hampton by any means. It is also ingenious casting to see Martin Sheen, ordinarily revered for playing the most admirable fictional US President on The West Wing, playing the villainous J. Edgar Hoover, who set up the infamous COINTELPRO program and had no qualms about essentially assassinating US citizens who were fighting for racial justice and equality.
It was interesting to watch this movie after watching The Trial of the Chicago 7 last fall, because they both take place in Chicago in the 1960s, and Fred Hampton's death (spoiler alert) happens offscreen in that movie. In this film, of course, we are leading up to Hampton's death, and even though I already knew what was coming, it didn't stop the movie from being incredibly tense and horrifying. And the epilogue, featuring clips of the actual men, further confirmed what wonderful performances Kaluuya and Stanfield had been delivering throughout the film. The one thing that did surprise me was the fact that these men were so young. O'Neal was only 17 when he became an informant, and at the time of his death, Hampton was only 21. It is such an incredible loss. I was swept away by Hampton's speeches in this movie - what could he have achieved if he had been allowed to live longer?
Judas and the Black Messiah is a dark, taut movie that features excellent performances and a searing screenplay by Shaka King (who also directed) and Will Berson. It is violent - be prepared for MANY gun fights - but it also tells an important story about the work of the Black Panthers. We are often only told about their violent rhetoric, instead of the incredible work they did to prop up their communities by offering free healthcare, meals, and education. Their clashes with the police echo the same clashes we see today with the Black Lives Matter movement, and it is tiring to see history repeat itself so often. And yet, it is also thrilling to see Black filmmakers getting more chances to tell these stories and amplify the voices of these people from our past, so that maybe, just maybe, we can finally fix our future.
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