So often in movies throughout the ages, we have sat in the comfort of knowing that our protagonist shares the same ethics as us. Superman will save people, Han Solo will liberate his people, Oskar Schindler saves many lives in the holocaust. Each one of these people are noble and inkeeping with the human spirit you very much believe is in yourself and everyone. Occasionally you have a film about a villain, think the Joker or Wolf of Wall Street. You can revel in the chaos, however you still have a sense of right or wrong. Occasionally you can have a bad protagonist, think Jack Nicholson in One Flew Over, despite his horrific crimes looking to save his fellow inmates from tyranny. Maybe you’ll have the family of Parasite, both protagonists and antagonists depending on whose perspective you take. The great strength of Judas & The Black Messiah is that the lead character William O’Neil fits somehow into both all of these and also none of these.

Played by Lakeith Stanfield, O’Neil is a petty car thief in 19×0’s America. Very soon he is caught and having impersonated an FBI officer, he is facing six years behind bars. However, he’s offered a deal by an FBI officer, played by ASBO nominee Jessie Plemons. He has to infiltrate and spy on the Black Panther chapter of Chicago, and earn the trust of charismatic and dangerous (according to the FBI) leader Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya), a man who believes he can unite all causes for equality. O’Neil becomes the driver and we see him infiltrate the chapter and gain Hampton’s trust.

The most interesting aspect of this is not knowing where O’Neil’s loyalties lie. Is he starting to believe was Hampton says? He seems to admire and look up to the FBI agent. He also seems to have his own back and act selfishly. Until the end, you’re never quite sure how he’s going to act and whether he’ll turn on Fred Hampton or the FBI. For such an ambiguous role, an actor needs to be incredibly talented and Lakeith Stanfield certainly was. His skitishness and relationships with the supporting cast were great. This would of course only be possible if both Daniel Kaluuya and Jessie Plemons were on top form, and thankfully they were.

The two plots of Hampton’s struggles and O’Neil’s conundrum counterbalance one another well, weaving between each other as we see that O’Neil may be the very thing Hampton stands against. One particular scene where Hampton gives a speech sees a silent conversation of facial expressions between O’Neil and the FBI agent in the same room. You can tell what they’re thinking and when the FBI agent speaks afterwards, his words can be devastating and powerful as he looks to manipulate O’Neil.

The whole film is wonderfully tight. The screenplay is on point with the speed of the film remaining bouncy but never rushed. It does feel cruel at times as you see the racism within the police and the corruption in the FBI blatantly there. In the UK we don’t know the story of Fred Hampton, however it’s definitely a fascinating subject which kept me engaged throughout. The one issue I had was that they didn’t quite emphasise how young Hampton was. Daniel Kaluuya brought him alive fantastically, however I never felt like he was 21 as he was when the story was based in real life.

Technically the film was great. It was aesthetically strong and the soundtrack was all on point as well. The narrative was consistent throughout and as I eluded to earlier, it kept you on the edge of your seat as unless you know the history, you’re not quite sure how it’s going to end. It may benefit you to read about the characters before hand and find the William O’Neil interview he did on TV, however I didn’t look for these and had no problem following the plot or the historical context.

Summary

As the film awards season winds down, Judas and The Black Messiah is an essential film to watch. A powerful story crafted well from a technical perspective and acted powerfully by an ensemble who are all on top form give us an engaging watch which deserves all the plaudits it’s getting. [Grade: A-]