- Proudly based on "some fo' real, fo' real shit," Spike Lee's wonderfully audacious BlacKkKlansman probably comes closer than any film I've seen to "writing history with lightning." Naturally, it also takes great pains to associate that memorable turn of phrase with Woodrow Wilson, who may or may not have used it to describe D. W. Griffith's The Birth of a Nation, one of the most unapologetically racist movies ever made. It's no coincidence that both The Birth of a Nation and Gone With the Wind make cameos in this film, as do blaxploitation legends Shaft, Superfly, and Cleopatra Jones. This is a lesson on Race in Film, your instructor is Spike Lee, and you had damn well better pay attention.
- Incidentally, BlacKkKlansman is also the story of Ron Stallworth (John David Washington), a real-life Colorado Springs police officer who infiltrated the Ku Klux Klan in the late 1970s. His story would be remarkable enough in any case, but the truly fascinating detail is that Stallworth is black. As the film tells it, Stallworth handled phone conversations with "The Organization" (as the Klan is called by its members), while his partner Flip Zimmerman (Adam Driver) managed the in-person meetings. And yes, Zimmerman is a Jewish name, thank you for asking. As Alec Baldwin's bloviating professor demonstrates in the film's bizarre opening scene, there's hate enough for everyone in this world.
- BlacKkKlansman's supporting characters are a true variety of varieties. The two police officers in Stallworth's corner (Michael Buscemi, Ken Garito) are counterbalanced by an overly conservative police chief (Robert John Burke) and a corrupt racist (Frederick Weller). Young revolutionaries like Patrice Dumas (Laura Harrier) derive inspiration from civil rights heroes such as Kwame Ture (Corey Hawkins) and Jerome Turner (Harry Belafonte). Even the despicable Klan members come in various flavors, including bitter (Ryan Eggold), unhinged (Jasper Pääkkönen), stupid (Paul Walter Hauser), and...semi-sweet (Ashlie Atkinson)? In fact, one of the film's boldest suggestions is that many of these absolutely horrible people could occasionally be charming, perhaps none so effectively as that mustachioed Grand Dragon himself, David Duke (Topher Grace).
- Although the film contains countless great performances and wonderful scenes, there is one sequence that should leave an indelible impression on all viewers. In it, Lee skillfully juxtaposes Jerome Turner's jarring remembrances of lynchings gone by with the Klan's celebratory screening of The Birth of a Nation, complete with shouts of "that's disgusting!" at all the wrong moments. It's one of those rare scenes that is so difficult to watch that I couldn't imagine taking my eyes off of it. And lest you think that Lee has unfairly characterized the opposition, he allows the all-too-real versions of David Duke and Donald Trump to have the film's last words, paired with video of hate-fueled demonstrations and a tribute to Heather Heyer, who was killed protesting the horrific Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville. I've always said that white supremacists are the best argument against white supremacy.
- Everybody in this film is somebody's relative. Denzel Washington's son, Peter Weller's nephew, Steve Buscemi's brother, John Turturro's brother, and Harry Belafonte's daughter.
- Sheeeeeeit, partner, even Isiah Whitlock Jr. is in this film!
