Directing: A
Acting: A
Writing: A
Cinematography: A-
Editing: A-

There is so much about Red, White and Blue that is . . . tricky. Once again, the first tricky thing is it being the middle installment out out of the five “Small Axe” films by Steve McQueen being presented weekly on Prime Video (this one went live today). So much of this entire project exists in the margins of categorization: this installment, for example, runs at 80 minutes—short for a movie; long for a television episode. I still lean toward regarding these all as feature films, but given that there are five of them, it’s a commitment. Who besides the film-obsessed like myself is going to watch them all?

And the thing is, even though they are not sequels, it’s becoming clear that their thematic connection is important. They each certainly stand on their own, but they are enhanced by watching them as a series. And Red, White and Blue might very well be the best of them yet. Mangrove got slightly better reviews on average, but I suspect at least part of that is first impressions of a clearly great project. Or, I suppose, I am currently experiencing recency bias. What does it matter when both films are great? The one that came second, last week’s Lovers Rock, didn’t strike me as quite as strong, but now that there are three, it feels in retrospect like a perfectly appropriate interlude. That one has its darker moments but on the whole is an expression of joy through music . . . the other two films in the series so far are much more direction focused on excessive force by the police.

And, like the first film, this one is also based on a true story, about a young Black man in 1980s London who finally decides to join the police force in an attempt to change it “from the inside,” after his immigrant Jamaican father is severely beaten by police. The Caribbean heritage has been a through line in all three films so far, making me expect now that the next two will be as well.

Boy, are these films well timed. Then again, they would be any time—but 2020 is a particularly relevant year for it. Some American films have tacked it as well, but given how many movies focus on cops (usually characterizing them not just as heroes, but easily assumed to be), it’s not that often you see the story of a Black person joining the force specifically because of its institutionalized racism.

Here McQueen deftly weaves in threads of multiple forms of racism, as well. When Leroy Logan (John Boyega, excellent) graduates and is assigned to the precinct in his home neighborhood, he meets and befriends a Pakistani man already also a cop there. Leroy is now the second of only two nonwhite cops there, and they immediately bond over shared experiences. Leroy also soon encounters the very same shit Asif (Assad Zaman) has been enduring all along, with colleagues openly mocking their races in their presence.

And this gets us back to what’s tricky: it’s tough to be in a position like this no matter what, but it’s especially tough when you’re the first. Leroy clearly doesn’t think of himself as a trailblazer per se, nor does this film call attention to that, but it’s what he is. He makes little headway in making the changes he set out to do in London policing, but his very existence makes it easier for another to come along after him and push things a little further along. This context is not discussed or presented at all in the film, in fact, but I sure thought about it. We watch his spirit getting slowly broken, but it’s on his shoulders on which those who follow him will be standing. Or did stand: this is based on a true story, after all.

Red, White and Blue is also compelling in technical ways, as I particularly enjoyed the cinematography in this film. There’s one tense sequence in which Leroy is navigating a factory maze of heavy machinery, with the camera moving ahead, behind and around him as he twists and turns in a long, unbroken take. It’s much like 1917 except without it being a gimmicky selling point. I’m using it to sell it to you now, however: it’s great work. It’s also the kind of camera work that’s only particularly appropriate in this one sequence, so it never distracts from or strains the storytelling. It still places the focus on the character, showing in real time how he’s in pursuit of a dangerous suspect, he calls for backup no fewer than three times, and for the entire chase he’s left on his own.

The entire series of “Small Axe” films is intended to represent the history of Black experience in Britain, and two installments now focus directly on the police—this time from within its ranks. Not only does Leroy face persecution from his colleagues, but since others in his community quite rightly regard the police as their enemy, they think of Leroy as a traitor. He gets his support from a narrow supply channel, mostly through his Aunt Jesse (Nadine Marshall) who works as a Police Liaison, and his wife, Gretl (Antonia Thomas). Incidentally, Tyrone Huntley appears in a few brief scenes as Leroy’s cousin, Imagination singer Leee John, and his being gay is merely subtly hinted at. Leee is incredulous, though, when he first hears of Leroy’s intention to become a cop.

So it takes much of Leroy’s family some time to even slightly warm up to the idea. Leroy faces uphill battles on all sides with this decision, and all these angles are seamlessly woven into this tight hour and twenty minutes, all of it absolutely worth your time.

*Out of the frying pan and into the fire.*

Overall: A