The latest from Spike Lee is set in 70’s Colorado Springs, when the first black officer (John David Washington) joined the police department. He inadvertently establishes a phone relationship as a fellow racists with the head of the local KKK chapter. When they decide to infiltrate the organization, a fellow officer and a Jew (Adam Driver) is enlisted to assume his role in person. This narrative is told with tension and humor, but the movie also takes several extended preachy moments to hammer home the history of racism in America. Despite Lee’s angry messages, there’s plenty of comedy that would border on absurdity if it weren’t based on truth. Even though the film skews polemic at times (dealing with a subject that’s sadly still timely), Lee’s skill as a storyteller creates a compelling narrative.
(4 / 5)