Judas and the Black Messiah

Available on streaming platforms and at the cinema, hurray!

Directed by Shaka King, Judas and the Black Messiah is based on the true events surrounding the FBI sanctioned assassination, while he slept, of chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panthers Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya). Identified by the FBI as an “agitator”, he is targeted by agent Roy Mitchell (Jesse Plemons), who recruits a young car thief, William O’Neal (LaKieth Stanfield), to infiltrate the panthers and get close to Hampton.

The film itself is not a biopic of Hampton and focuses more on his betrayal by O’Neal. However, it is hard to ignore Hampton as the film gravitates around this fantastic portrayal by Kaluuya. Hampton clearly was very charismatic and this is brought to life with Kaluuya electrifying the screen whenever he is on it. It’s not just the obvious public persona that he shares that draws you in to his Oscar winning performance, it is also the measured and private moments where we learn about his drives and hopes.

LaKeith Stanfield is excellent alongside him, not so obviously “showy”, as O’Neal’s character doesn’t allow for that, instead we get a performance that leaves it purposely unclear to whether he felt any sympathy or admiration for Hampton or was he just looking out for himself and drawn in by the FBI’s inducements.

It is the performances that make this film, with Plemons and Dominique Fishback, as Hamptons girlfriend and activist Deborah Johnson, particularly standing out.

However, as excellent as the performances are and as interesting as the story is, for me the film didn’t quite work. It felt a little baggy and slow paced at times and I felt we never got into fully understanding the characters, their motivations or the context for some of the seemingly disjointed incidents we see portrayed.

Hampton’s story is fascinating he was not just a black rights activist but much more nuanced, recognising that persecution was not limited to race but instead aimed at the poorest in society. The saw him bring together disaffected blacks, latinos and whites in a common cause.

The performances alone and Kaluuya in particular make this worth watching. But it did feel that the storytelling never quite matched the performance quality. That said it was great to be back at the cinema and Kaluuya’s performance will stick with me for some time to come.