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 (021321)
I started writing this review a few weeks after domestic terrorists stormed the
US Capitol, as many of the police calmly stood by, letting white supremacists pass through
barricades, allowing them to invade the entirety of the building, taking selfies
with them, and then ushering them peacefully out without making many arrests.
Comparing that response to months earlier in DC, when BLM protestors were met
with force, instigation, angst, and brutality, well, I’ve just got a lot of
feelings about the unabashed display of white power that took place on January
6. I can’t say I’m surprised, or shocked, or “this is not America.” No, this is
exactly who we are and have been. It’s got me thinking about Kemp Powers’ script
for One Night in Miami, which highlights the horrific state of racial affairs in
1960’s America, even for Black elites.
Based on his play of the same name, ONIM is a fictionalized tale of a true night
– February 25, 1964 in Miami, Florida when rising boxing star, 22 year-old
Cassius Clay, just about to announce his conversion to Islam and name change to
Muhammad Ali, surprisingly beat out favorite Sonny Liston. After the fight, he
famously spent the evening with his friends Malcolm X, Jim Brown, and Sam Cooke.
Powers’ story imagines what could have transpired that evening–the jokes,
confessions, debates–via prolific, beautiful prose. Four Black heroes of their
time, (or of all time, really) together in one space, at one time–it’s
intoxicating to think what might have actually went down.
Kemp takes us back a step in the opening scenes of the film, newly written for
the adaptation, illustrating the trials of each hero in 1963: young Cassius Clay
(Eli Goree) suffers a crushing defeat at Wembley Stadium in London; NFL star Jim
Brown (Aldis Hodge) receives some of the most disgusting treatment at the hands
of a Southern “gentleman;” Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir) endures increasing
tension over Nation of Islam leader Elijah Muhammad’s extramarital activities
with very young Nation secretaries; Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.) suffers a
career-low flop at the hands of racist white audiences at the Copa.
Fast forward to the night in question in 1964, Clay is on a high post-win,
praying with Malcolm in the latter’s room at the famed, historic Hampton House
in Brownsville, just outside of Miami. Hampton House was the place to be for
Black patrons during the time, especially since Miami’s Jim Crow laws didn’t
allow Black people to spend the night there, even if you were as much of a star
as young Cassius Clay. Sam Cooke and his wife, on the other hand, are depicted
staying at the illustrious Fontainebleu, even though only part of the hotel was
designated for Black guests at the time. Eventually, Cooke and Brown meet up,
heading to Malcolm’s room at the Hampton House where he has little but vanilla
ice cream to serve them. All four men are on the verge of great gambles: Brown’s
about to retire as one of the greatest NFL players and head to Hollywood to
shoot his first film. Clay is set to announce joining the Nation of Islam and
changing his name to Muhammad Ali. Malcolm X is planning to separate from the
Nation of Islam and Sam Cooke has a new album in the works.
Over ice cream and soda they philosophize about the weight on their respective
shoulders and the nuances of what it feels like to be Black in America. Brown
underscores the distinction between light-skinned and darker Black folks, an
internal oppression within their own community. But it’s the greater debate
about the responsibility of Black elites that makes up the heart of the script.
While Jim feels their power lies more in their ability to become financially
successful, Cassius believes that with more power comes more freedom. Malcolm,
however, appearing disappointed in Sam’s pandering to white audiences, believes
him a “wind-up toy in a music box,” and that successful Black men of the time
are detrimental, doing little to actually help the Civil Rights cause. Malcolm
plays Bob Dylan’s “Blowin’ in the Wind” as an example, lamenting that Dylan
managed to write more about racism in the US in one song (as a white man) than
Sam Cooke had in his entire catalog. In real life, Cooke loved “Blowin’ in the
Wind,” stating this song was part of the inspiration behind his masterpiece, “A
Change is Gonna Come” (though it was also about his experience being turned away
from a whites-only Holiday Inn in Shreveport, Louisiana). This debate lingers
between Malcolm X and Cooke for much of the latter half of the film. Is it
enough that Black performers achieve some mainstream success in a white world or
should they fight for more? (This question reminds me of the themes at play in
the equally stunning play-to-screen adaptation of Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom). As
Malcolm and Sam go back and forth, Kemp’s crackling dialogue reminds us at every
turn we’re watching a play, but that’s not a bad thing.
Helmed by massively talented actress-director Regina King, One Night in Miami is
the first film directed by a Black woman to be invited to the Venice Film
Festival, which is equal parts surprising and not all at the same time. In ONIM,
it’s clear we’re watching theater, but King skillfully allows welcome changes of
period-gorgeous scenery just when we feel we may need them–the glamorous pool
and quiet rooftop of Hampton House, a convenience store, a raucous bar. The look
and feel of this film perfectly transports you back to the style of the ‘60s.
But it’s her talent directing fellow actors that’s really the showcase here–she
knows how to secure amazing performances and gets four stellar ones here, not to
mention fine moments from Lance Reddick (one of the best parts of the John Wick
franchise), Joaquina Kalukango as Betty X, Nicolette Robinson as Barbara Cooke,
and Michael Imperioli (Christopher on The Sopranos). Eli Goree as soon-to-be
Ali is pretty terrific – he manages to make good use of the cleverly-written
dialogue, matching Muhammad Ali’s distinctive speaking style. Meanwhile Aldis
Hodge as Brown is luminous and leading-man material. But I had the strongest
emotional responses to Kingsley Ben-Adir as Malcolm X and Leslie Odom Jr. as Sam
Cooke.
The film feels like a door opening, one in which the audience catches a glimpse
of what might have been, what these men might have truly been like on the
inside, which is just enough to inspire you to learn so much more about all four
of them. If you’re watching One Night in Miami looking for a historically
accurate biopic, this isn’t quite it, and that’s exactly the way it’s supposed
to be. It’s a beautiful fantasy of a night in which four heroes come together
before spinning out again into their different orbits. Jim Brown became a
successful actor (he went on to act in over 50 movies and television shows);
Cassius Clay became the larger-than-life Muhammad Ali as we know him today; Sam
Cooke recorded “A Change is Gonna Come,” a song that would become critical to
the Civil Rights Movement prior to his death in 1964; and Malcolm X left the
Nation of Islam, founding both the Muslim Mosque, Inc. and the Organization of
Afro-American Unity. While America today is still fractured, I hope One Night in
Miami inspires audiences to learn more about these four men, who, each in their
own way, paved the way for change to come.
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