One Night in Miami
Regina King directing One Night in Miami is a gift. Working from a script by Kemp Powers, she takes the stage play and turns it into something incredible and high-minded. The film is interested in ideas and debates between the main characters that happen in the confine of a hotel room. It imagines a conversation of four legendary African Americans after the boxing victory of Cassius Clay in Miami. They are all friends but are unafraid to challenge each other on the future of Black America and their part in it.
The conversations reveal the tensions that underlay a major moment for Black America.
Eli Goree plays Cassius Clay, Kingsley Ben-Adir is Malcolm X, Aldis Hodge is Jim Brown, and Leslie Odom Jr is Sam Cooke. Malcolm X is about to break away from the Nation of Islam and start his own organization while also trying to get Cassius Clay to convert to Islam to help him with this move. Clay is unsure about the convert, Brown wants to make a shift from sports to movies, and Cooke is defending his own career. Each man is going through something that turns a night of celebration into a reflection on life.
Ben-Adir is following in the footsteps of Denzel Washington and is tasked with the most difficult role. He plays Malcolm with a self-righteousness that forces the group to reflect on themselves. In the ensemble, Malcolm stands out. Goree nails his role as Clay through his quickness and humor. He is able to step in as a peacemaker for some of the intense moments of the night.
King with the help of cinematographer Tami Reiker creates a vivid ambiance of the 1960s in Miami. They create a lively world outside with locals at the pool and sports stadium that contradict the ambiance of the closed-off hotel room. Their conversation is stripped down to the barest essences. There are no unnecessary distractions, just four men talking. In this vulnerable environment, King has created a safe space for her actors that is nurturing. Each actor brings life and distinct energy to their character which makes this so engaging and immensely watchable. King and Powers emphasize that the Black identity is not a monolith through the conflicting ideas of the four men.
One Night in Miami doesn't sacrifice the honesty and complexity of being Black in 1960's America. It is rare to see a film with four strong Black leads playing four Black legends in a what-if scenario. It presents big issues to the audience that haven't gone away. It is one I will be thinking about often.