BLINDSPOTTING – Review

When is it okay to forgive someone for the sins of their past? More importantly, if they served their time and took the time to make changes in their ways, is it okay to turn a blind eye to their past mistakes? This idea of redemption and how society may not forgive or forget is something that we’re currently seeing played out publicly right now with James Gunn and his past twitter comments (which he previously acknowledged were wrong), but it’s something that men and women who have previously been convicted of a crime have to deal with every day. When they apply for a job… when they apply for housing… “Have you ever been convicted of a felony?” How one action can trigger a chain of events that will affect your entire life is what’s at the center of Daveed Diggs (of Hamilton fame) and Rafael Casal’s relevant and searing drama. BLINDSPOTTING shows a number of events or decisions that are made in the moment that have long-suffering consequences.

Besides writing the screenplay, the two star as the leads in this one-part buddy-comedy, one-part love letter to Oakland, and one-part examination of the inherent fear and bias that’s embedded in our country. Collin (Diggs) is merely days away from his probation ending. As he races home one night to make curfew after dropping his best friend Miles off (Casal), he witnesses a black man running away from a white police officer before he is shot dead in the street. Collin heads home with the image of the man’s body burned in the back of his head. As Collin contemplates his own life in Oakland, he’s forced to look at Miles and the rest of the people in his life and determine how he can be true to his upbringing while finding redemption for his past mistakes.

BLINDSPOTTING isn’t afraid to tackle a milieu of issues going on right now. Its in-your-face messages are frequently ambitious but only occasionally emotional due to the constant high intensity. It feels like slam-poetry as it bounces from topics of gentrification one minute to police bias and brutality all in the same rhyme. The ideas, for the most part, all work relatively together, but the flow seems slightly off at first as the film struggles to find that right balance of drama, comedy, and even the occasional surreal/nightmarish imagery that makes the TV series ATLANTA so successful.

The script really excels when it’s hitting the dramatic beats in large part due to Diggs and Casal’s performances. Their chemistry is instantly felt, but more importantly, they feel natural playing these characters since the film is based on their own neighborhood. There are several hard-hitting conversations throughout. The two show their chops at handling the intensity and weight of the moment, but the one that shows their talent the most, as well as the power of the fiery script, is where they have to face each other after a house party gets out of control. Collin and Miles are forced to address changes in themselves in order to move on, and yet the scene isn’t even necessarily about that. It runs the gamut of how a black man is not looked at in the same way as a white man walking down the street while also pointing out how Miles, living as a minority in an urban area, has to acclimate in order to feel accepted. Yet, the biggest takeaway from the scene is that this landscape is a complicated one to maneuver, especially with our heightened sense of fear of the “other” in 2018.

As much as the film is about just these three days up until Collin’s freedom, it’s also very interested in pointing out the cyclical element of how these situations stemming from bias and fear can consistently be misinterpreted and how there’s not going to be a resolution to these issues if we don’t stop and fully look at the whole picture. Yet, as the film approaches the finish line, it also feels the need to tighten up all of these story threads before the credits roll. I guess there’s something satisfying about seeing these hanging stories come to a conclusion, but it also feels a little too convenient and forced in the end while ignoring the theme that there are no easy answers to these complicated questions.

BLINDSPOTTING is a film that you see, smell, and hear. Its portrayal of Oakland is so sincere and earnest that it practically explodes off the screen. It’s a film very much of its time and makes its presence known, even if it’s not always felt. It’s important to have films like BLINDSPOTTING ignite these conversations that need to be had so that we can avoid the mistakes of the past. However, with the focus on the intensity of the emotions and a presentation fueled by passion, it results in a film with messages coming from all over and a fire that feels a little unstructured.

Overall score: 3.5 out of 5

BLINDSPOTTING is now playing in theaters everywhere