Qhis evening, at 21.20 on Rai 3, it will be broadcast Judas and the Black Messiaha film of strong political and civil commitment that tells the short life of the famous African American activist Fred Hampton. Party leader of Black Panthersbrutally killed at just 21 by the FBI.
Judas and the Black Messiah: the plot of the movie
Chicago, 1969. Underage criminal Bill O’Neal (LaKeith Stanfield) agrees on behalf of the FBI to infiltrate the Black Panther party of Illinois. In charge of keep an eye on their charismatic and powerful leader: Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya). A petty thief by profession, the boy almost seems to enjoy taking the risk of manipulating both his companions and his supervisor: Special Agent Roy Mitchell (Jesse Plemons).
Meanwhile, Hampton’s political influence is on the rise and man meets and falls in love with fellow revolutionist Deborah Johnson (Dominique Fishback). Meanwhile, a dilemma arises in Bill’s mind. Will he side with Hampton or will he help bring down the Black Panthers by any means?. As is the case with FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover (Martin Sheen). The answer? Unfortunately Hampton will die at the age of 21 after a raid on his apartment by the FBI.
A film that is also necessary for the present time
Directed by Shaka King, the film skilfully mixes civil commitment and genre cinema. Two hours at gun cotton focused on the struggle and mobilization that does not want to be mainstream or authorial. Along the lines of Spike Lee’s cinema, Judas and the Black Messiah alongside the stories of the individual characters, the one with a capital Srecounting the power intrigues of a conservative America and absolutely deaf to the revolutionary winds of the counterculture.
A scene from “Judas and the Black Messiah”. (Courtesy Warner Bros.)
With great narrative skill, the director Shaka King uses a clearly biblical metaphor right from the title, providing a precise picture of the situation of black Americans in the 1960s. Christological assonances never ends in themselves but that they allow the viewer to trace, even in the present time, the urgencies and requests of the community. Especially after the protests of Black Lives Matter. In doing so, it makes use of a formidable group of actors led by Lakeith Stanfield and Daniel Kaluuya. The latter winner of a Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in 2021.
Fred Hampton’s character
Coordinator in the State of Illinois of the Black Panther Party and his nationally representative, the African American activist was born in 1948. At the age of 18 he founded what will be called the Rainbow Coalition, a multicultural political organization which included in addition to the Black Panthers also groups such as the Young Patriots and the Young Lords. Purpose of the coalition: fight for social change in favor of the most disadvantaged classes.
In December 1969, Bill O’Neal administers a sleeping pill without Hampton’s knowledge while in the night an FBI raid enters his apartment. Killing the man with two bullet shots to the head. Months later, a judge ruled the murder as “accidental”, unleashing a media uproar. Then, in 1982, the activist’s relatives finally get justice in a civil suit which provides for compensation of two million dollars.
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