Mangrove (Small Axe)
BBCSteve McQueen’s Mangrove features remarkably similar subject matter to Aaron Sorkin’s film The Trail of the Chicago 7. Both depict trials that took place in the late 60s, are about a group of protesters being charged by government forces for inciting riots but are in reality political trials, and they both involve racism to some extent. McQueen’s film is unequivocally better in every aspect.
Where Chicago 7 exposed Sorkin’s lack of directorial skills, Mangrove is a perfect highlight of McQueen’s phenomenal abilities. This is a beautiful film, chock-full of immaculate compositions and drenched in vibrant colours the whole way through. Even though the film was released as a part of McQueen’s Small Axe series on Amazon Prime and could be classified as a TV episode, it utilizes a decidedly cinematic palette. It wasn’t shot on film, but cinematographer Shabier Kirchner makes it look grainy enough to fool even a trained eye. Mangrove feels textured and alive, so even when the film seems to meander (mostly at the beginning, when the full scope isn’t clear), viewers will have plenty of eye candy to keep them engaged.
With the creation of Small Axe, McQueen sought to tell the overlooked stories of Black West Indian immigrants living in Britain. Mangrove focuses on Frank Crichlow (Shaun Parkes), a middle-aged man living in Notting Hill who tries to open a restaurant but continually gets harassed by the police. His restaurant eventually becomes a symbol of the Black community, and he, along with eight other Notting Hill denizens, are put on trial after a protest against the police devolves into violence. The second hour of the film meticulously follows the trial, and this half proves to be more enthralling, if only because the true intent of the film becomes clear and the emotions in the deft script by McQueen and Alastair Siddons reach a boiling point.
Like McQueen’s 2013 Best Picture winner, 12 Years a Slave, Mangrove deals in relatively absolute themes: systemic racism is bad, the police are bad, the rigged court system is bad. But Mangrove is able to transcend those simplistic messages by attacking them in nuanced ways. More specifically, Mangrove is about a group of people who realize that asking the system to deal with the system is ridiculous. The only option then is self-advocacy. Two of the nine defendants represent themselves, and all of them decide to openly challenge prejudice in the court instead of playing nice for the judge. The film teaches more nuanced lessons than many would have the wherewithal to address.
Those lessons would be meaningless, though, if the film’s roiling emotions were not so immediate. Thankfully, due to the seething and moving performances by Parkes, Letitia Wright, and Malachi Kirby, Mangrove is more than just a history lesson: it is a rollercoaster of intensity. Parkes, playing the eldest character of the trio, showcases a man choosing between self-preservation and justice for all. Speaking up could mean losing his business, but he would be helping the next generation. Emotions flicker across his worn face and watching his decision weigh on him is almost as moving as his ultimate catharsis. One particular long take towards the end is almost guaranteed to bring even the most heartless viewer to tears.
Wright, exploring a role almost the polar opposite of her star-making turn in Black Panther, displays explosive range while also keeping tethered to reality as a member of the real-life Black Panthers who helped organize the protest. Her character is responsible for much of the film’s forward momentum, and her measured outcries are handled perfectly. Her outrage is evident in every scene. Then there’s Kirby, who steals more than one courtroom scene with the sheer power of his words and his face. As one of the defendants who represents himself, the joy he feels during one pivotal cross-examination scene will quickly become the audience’s, and his exasperated pleas for freedom are some of the film’s most moving.
Christmas has come early this year, because Mangrove is merely the first of five films in the Small Axe lineup. It’s not often that audiences are treated to more than one project per auteur in a year, never mind five. And if the rest are even half as good as Mangrove than McQueen is sure to solidify his status as one of the premiere filmmakers of this decade.
