Grade: 90%
2021 Ranked - HERE

Detailing the betrayal of Black Panther Party chairman Fred Hampton by an FBI informant, Judas and the Black Messiah offers a unique look at the tensions between the police and the Black Panther Party that I haven’t seen before. This was one of my most anticipated films of the year, I love dramas based on true events in history and this particular chapter of American history has always had my interest but I realized after watching this film how little I actually knew about the story of Hampton and the BPP. This did not disappoint me as basically everything about this film was great, it’s technically very well done, I loved the cinematography and the music throughout, they both got me into the story which was also very good. The performances are all top-notch as well, whether it’s LaKeith Stanfield or Dominque Fishback who each gave great performances, or the standout Daniel Kaluuya as Hampton who is my pick for the Oscar this year, it’s his career-best in my opinion and that’s saying a lot. The story is an important one to tell and while the only negative I have involved some of the story elements that dragged, it’s still overall an effective one that needed to be told. Judas and the Black Messiah is easily the best of the year so far and I hope it starts getting recognized by awards bodies now that it’s widely released, it’s frustrating to watch but it’s because it’s such an effective story.