I confess I’m not much of a Spike Lee fan, but, over time, I’ve learned to process his filmmaking for the social consciousness he intends. And over time, his films have become more thoughtful and less beat-you-over-the-head. BlacKkKlansman is the next iteration of Spike Lee storytelling…

It’s the story of a Black police detective who gains membership to the Ku Klux Klan by pretending to be black over the phone, then recruiting his Jewish co-worker to pose as him in person to seal the deal.

Story: This is a true story. Based on the book by Ron Stallworth, Black Klansman, Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman is the screen writing work of Charles Wachtel, David Rabinowitz, Kevin Willmott.

I haven’t read the book, but, this is a fascinating story. The screenwriters bring this story full circle without leaving out what could have been important details in this ruse. They do a good job of making it clear that this story was a risky operation at a time when equality was still questionable.

And I didn’t feel like I was watching a Spike Lee film. This film is about Ron Stallworth and the KKK… Not Spike Lee.

Performances: John David Washington is his father’s son. He looks like his mother, but, clearly has his father’s ability to shine. For those of you who don’t know, his father is Denzel Washington. But John David is the real deal. His first major film role and he delivers a truly inspired performance. Not sure about Oscar, but, let’s see who else shows up…

Other performances of note: Adam Driver as Flip Zimmerman, a Jewish detective working with John Stallworth, Topher Grace as David Duke, Grand Wizard of the KKK, Ryan Eggold as Walter Breachway, President, KKK Colorado Springs and Felix and Connie Kendrickson, avid KKK members.

These are tough performances because of the subject matter and each one of these actors makes their characters feel real.

Visual: Set in 1970’s Colorado Springs, everything about this film looks like the 1970’s. Not so sure Colorado Springs is a character, but, for the purposes of telling this story, it could have happened anywhere. This is truly the age of big afros, bell bottoms and polyester clothing…

Rating: I’m giving BlacKkKlansman an A- because it’s such an unbelievable story. Basically, a black police officer punk’d the KKK. The only people who might find fault with that are supporters of the KKK. Everybody else is having a good laugh…

See BlacKkKlansman and have a good laugh…