One Night in Miami (2020). Fitting movie for MLK day I suppose. This is a fictionalized account of an actual meeting of Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown, and Sam Cooke in a room at the Hampton House in February 1964, celebrating Ali's surprise title win over Sonny Liston. Ali was still Cassius Clay at the time, but the film explores how that change occurred the next morning. This was a stage play, and like Ma Rainey, feels like it, if less so. Each character has a short prequel before this fateful evening, that lends a bit to their unique situation. It was a pivotal time for each, Clay, just became champion and would soon announce his conversion and start his civil rights efforts. Brown had just made his first movie and would soon retire from the NFL and make more movies. He'd become an activist in his own ways. Cooke was very successful, and would soon channel that success a bit differently, before being killed in suspicious circumstances less than a year later. Malcolm X of course would also be killed a year later by the Nation of Islam. Ali, the youngest by far would live to 2016. Jim Brown is still with us.
The discussion is frank, impassioned and touches on so many issues that remain relevant today. It's so very interesting to see how each of these men, famous and successful in different ways, approaches issues of racism differently. Some within the system, using leverage they have gained. Others fighting to destroy the system. Others, quietly seething, waiting, cool on the surface, angry below. The movie doesn't take sides, but simply lays it out for us to consider. It is extremely well done.
The acting is phenomenal. Each of the four co-leads does an astonishing job becoming these very famous real men. It's not an easy task. All four are award worthy in my view. This rates 3.5/4 for me, but it's pretty close to 4/4.
