One Night In Miami

"It is a time for martyrs now, and if I am to be one, it will be for the cause of brotherhood. That's the only thing that can save this country" - Malcolm X, February 19, 1965

One Night in Miami tells the fictional encounter of Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown and Sam Cooke in a Miami hotel room in February 1964, celebrating Ali's surprise victory over Sonny Liston. Based on the play of the same name by Kemp Powers (the screenwriter of this film), One Night in Miami easily establishes itself not only as one of the best films of this year but as an exciting reflection on our society today and looks at the integration of African-American minorities in the 1960s in the United States. This film about four exceptional men is not only a hymn of rare intelligence but deals with a universal subject showing the importance of fighting for one's convictions and finding one's place in society.

Kemp Powers' screenplay places the action at a key moment in the lives of Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown and Sam Cooke. As Malcolm X is about to create his own political organization, Cassius Clay is not yet known as Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown is thinking of leaving the world of sports to become an actor, and Sam Cooke begins to meet his first big successes, these four men wonder about the fate of African-Americans in an American society that leaves little room for racial minorities. The numerous dialogues but also the numerous songs of Sam Cooke give to this film a very particular aura and sends us back to the many ways of the United States.

After having directed several episodes of series (Scandal, Animal Kingdom, This is Us, The Good doctor), Regina King for her first film in cinema (we will disregard the TV movie The Finest (2018)) shows that she is not only a great actress but a director who has a rare gift for storytelling and who knows how to direct her actors to perfection. Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree, Aldis Hodge, Leslie Odom Jr. prove to be perfect and quite similar to the real characters who have forever marked our collective memories. Far from simply adapting a play and falling into the trap of an overly static staging, she infuses this film with an overflowing energy for which we can only allow ourselves to be immersed.

Far from this Hollywood cinema that too often forgets to give real depth to the characters and prefers to focus on special effects that are not always convincing or to stage actors and actresses adored by the audience but not always convincing in their roles, One Night in Miami stands out as the perfect example of what an excellent film should be, an inspired direction, a chiseled script without any false notes, actors totally invested and a music full of nostalgia for a past period.

One night in Miami also features this year's most successful music scene that will forever leave a lasting impression on your moviegoer's memory. One suspects that this one is inspired by a key moment in Sam Cooke's career but above all it shows us the power of music in our society to unite people from different social levels and backgrounds. It also shows the power of cinema to move us totally and make us want to stand up and applaud. It gives this film a very special aura and will make it remain in our memory for a long time after we discover it.

One Night in Miami
Directed by Regina King
Produced by Jess Wu Calder, Keith Calder, Jody Klein
Screenplay by Kemp Powers
Based on One Night in Miami by Kemp Powers
Starring Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree, Aldis Hodge, Leslie Odom Jr.
Music by Terence Blanchard
Cinematography Tami Reiker
Edited by Tariq Anwar
Production companies : Snoot Entertainment, ABKCO
Distributed by Amazon Studios
Release date: September 7, 2020 (Venice), December 25, 2020 (United States)
Running time: 110 minutes

Seen on December 31, 2020 (Amazon press screener)

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