Blindspotting - Review
Described as a comedy-drama, this timely first feature film by Carlos López Estrada gained critical acclaim at the time of its release (2018) including being nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance Film Festival.
Collin (Daveed Diggs) is on his last 3 days of probation and Blindspotting follows him and his best friend Miles over the course of these 3 days, and the day he comes off his probation. Set in Oakland the backgrounds and both bleak and beautiful, contrasting the Oakland of the past with the ongoing gentrification of the area.
At my time of watching Blindspotting, the Ahmaud Arbery case was blowing up in Georgia (US), where an unarmed black man had been shot by two white men (one being an ex-police officer) whilst jogging. This added another layer to the story for me and really brought home the point of Blindspotting. Whilst there are clearly many themes at play, for me the most pertinent was that despite growing up in the same neighbourhood at the same time, with similar social circles and upbringings, Miles would never truly have the same experience as Collin. The differences in their treatment by those around them, including strangers, friends and law enforcement highlights this further. Interestingly, a small but significant plot point is how Miles hates being compared to the other "hipster" white people who he views as very much an invited group of 'others' yet still benefits from the same racial privilege when compared to Collin. Collin points this out, stating that he (Miles) can just go round committing crimes without looking over his shoulder all the time. Perhaps this can be explained on a practical level by Collin having been to prison, therefore facing the consequences of his actions and making changes in his life.
Alex described this as "tensest film he's seen in a long time even though nothing bad happens." There is one particular scene that I think exemplifies this, that is where Collin has ended up in possession of a gun (despite sending the whole movie managing to avoid this scenario) and a police car pulls up behind him. The scene lasts less than one minute but is expertly crafted to build tension, and the audience genuinely do not know which turn the narrative will take.
It is a unique film, and one that sticks with you well after the credits roll. The only film I could think that it reminded me of was Sorry to Bother You, I later learnt the two movies were filmed in Oakland concurrently.
Rating: 9/10
Similar films: Sorry to Bother You
Collin (Daveed Diggs) is on his last 3 days of probation and Blindspotting follows him and his best friend Miles over the course of these 3 days, and the day he comes off his probation. Set in Oakland the backgrounds and both bleak and beautiful, contrasting the Oakland of the past with the ongoing gentrification of the area.
At my time of watching Blindspotting, the Ahmaud Arbery case was blowing up in Georgia (US), where an unarmed black man had been shot by two white men (one being an ex-police officer) whilst jogging. This added another layer to the story for me and really brought home the point of Blindspotting. Whilst there are clearly many themes at play, for me the most pertinent was that despite growing up in the same neighbourhood at the same time, with similar social circles and upbringings, Miles would never truly have the same experience as Collin. The differences in their treatment by those around them, including strangers, friends and law enforcement highlights this further. Interestingly, a small but significant plot point is how Miles hates being compared to the other "hipster" white people who he views as very much an invited group of 'others' yet still benefits from the same racial privilege when compared to Collin. Collin points this out, stating that he (Miles) can just go round committing crimes without looking over his shoulder all the time. Perhaps this can be explained on a practical level by Collin having been to prison, therefore facing the consequences of his actions and making changes in his life.
Alex described this as "tensest film he's seen in a long time even though nothing bad happens." There is one particular scene that I think exemplifies this, that is where Collin has ended up in possession of a gun (despite sending the whole movie managing to avoid this scenario) and a police car pulls up behind him. The scene lasts less than one minute but is expertly crafted to build tension, and the audience genuinely do not know which turn the narrative will take.
It is a unique film, and one that sticks with you well after the credits roll. The only film I could think that it reminded me of was Sorry to Bother You, I later learnt the two movies were filmed in Oakland concurrently.
Similar films: Sorry to Bother You
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