Judas and the Black Messiah

Judas and the Black Messiah
Starring Daniel Kaluuya, Lakeith Stanfield, Jesse Plemons, Dominique Fishback
Directed by Shaka King

Even those who aren't devoutly religious knows about the story of Judas. He was one of Jesus's twelve disciples who followed the man for three years as he traveled from city to city preaching about the glory of God, a man who was in the inner circle of Christ's most trusted allies - and he ends up selling him out for thirty silver pieces to the priests of the temple who have Jesus arrested for blasphemy after he claimed he was the Son of God. Judas famously sealed Jesus's fate with a kiss, marking him as the one to arrest, and Judas's life afterward was tumultuous to say the least - resulting in him committing suicide by hanging, having betrayed the Son of God. In this respect, "Judas and the Black Messiah" is an all-true fitting title for this film, as once again a man within the inner sanctum of a traveling preacher betrays his mentor for money, leading to a very unsatisfying life.

Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya) was the chairman of the Black Panther Party in Chicago in the late 1960s, a man who rose to prominence after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. J. Edgar Hoover (Martin Sheen), director of the FBI, calls Hampton the next "Black Messiah," and is worried about what a man with that much influence will do against the racist white cops in Chicago, and FBI Special Agent Roy Mitchell (Jesse Plemons) comes up with an idea - send a man on the inside to gain intelligence and serve as an informant for the FBI. He finds a willing volunteer in Bill O'Neal (Lakeith Stanfield), a low-level criminal who is given a clean slate and copious amounts of money to serve as the inside man for the FBI. O'Neal slowly earns the trust of Hampton and serves at his right hand as he travels across Chicago in an attempt to unify the Black Panthers with other rival gangs and militias to form the Rainbow Coalition, which angers and worries Hoover to see not just African Americans - but Americans of every color - uniting against the injustice of the white police force. As O'Neal continues his investigation, he begins to associate more with Hampton and feel a deeper sense of connection with the man and his growing family - including his pregnant girlfriend Deborah (Dominique Fishback). He also worries that he'll be found out, and numerous times tells Mitchell that he wants out - but he's forced to keep the charade with worries of being sent to prison if he backs out.

Much like "The Departed," "Judas and the Black Messiah" is filled with double-crosses and deceitful tactics that - again - gives a very good reason for the title. Much like Judas, Bill O'Neal gained the trust of his leader and served inside his inner circle, all the while being an informant against him. Both men sold their leader out for profit, and in the end, both men committed suicide. The mantle of "Black Messiah" was given to several African American leaders, and the title changed once that man was assassinated - from Martin Luther King Jr. to Fred Hampton to Malcolm X, many held the title and holding that title put an instant target on your back from the racists who wanted to maintain an all-white utopia. The only difference between these three men is that Hampton had someone on the inside who not only deceived him, but assisted in his own assassination. Unfortunately, despite the efforts of these and other men, while equality has been mostly achieved, there's still a long way to go before African Americans will be seen as wholly equal.

When it comes to the story, it's a mixed bag. Daniel Kaluuya will easily earn another Oscar nomination for his performance as Fred Hampton, and his scenes wholly electrify the screen. He plays Hampton with a suave charisma and intelligence that helps you understand how truly powerful the man was - he was able to bring rival gangs together, stand strong against an unjust law system, and endure unjust prison sentences and never gave up his belief in equality. He was a revolutionary, and Kaluuya easily did the man justice with his strong, passioned, powerful performance.

Yet when it comes to Bill O'Neal, the story is a bit more subdued. This isn't the fault of Lakeith Stanfield, who once again gives an exceptional performance as he did in the underrated "Sorry to Bother You," but rather it comes with his position in the film. O'Neal is the bad guy, but there's no big motive that's shown for O'Neal's purpose. We know the reason O'Neal starts being an informant, but it's like Stanfield is confined to auto-pilot throughout the rest of the film. There's moments where he wants to quit, but we never really know why, apart from his own fears of being found out. We see him grow close to Hampton, but can't tell if its for his informant gig or if he really buys into what Hampton is selling. However, this could also tie in to the biblical Judas, as there wasn't much reason given in the Bible as to why Judas decided to sell Jesus out - so I guess in that sense the film again lives up to its title.

The story is filled with captivating performances and incredible dialogue - of of which was delivered by Kaluuya - and serves to show the insane struggle that African Americans have had to go through to get to where we're at now, which still isn't close to where it should be, especially in the light of George Floyd's murder at the hands of cops last year that eerily parallels how the cops in the film treated the African Americans - and that was fifty years ago. Captured with perfection by cinematographer Sean Bobbitt and Kristan Sprague's editing, you get a true feel for how Hampton and his Black Panther Party endured hardships yet remained steadfast in their mission through everything, and serves as a haunting depiction of how merciless and cruel racism was - and still is.

Led by a powerful performance by Daniel Kaluuya, "Judas and the Black Messiah" shed important light on the life of a man not as well known as other visionaries of his day, but whose impact was undeniable, as was his ultimate betrayal at the hands of someone he once called a friend.

The Score: A+