The Birth of a Nation (2016)

Directed by Nate Parker. Starring Nate Parker, Armie Hammer, Aja Naomi King, Colman Domingo, Mark Boone Junior, Dwight Henry, Aunjanue Ellis, Roger Guenveur Smith, Jackie Earle Haley, Esther Scott, Jason Stuart, Jayson Warner Smith, Penelope Ann Miller. [R]

Purposefully sharing the same name as D. W. Griffith’s repulsively racist silent film landmark, this incendiary account of the slave revolt led by Nat Turner in Antebellum Virginia was, for all its flaws, unfairly maligned and/or disregarded because of the controversy surrounding its filmmaker, but was also unworthy of the hype that preceded said controversy. In the lead actor’s first outing behind the camera, Parker directs with such a heavy, calculated touch that it’s like he’s trying to draw a road map of deep-seated emotions, robbing the film of the nuance needed to make it feel like more than a fiery propaganda piece (it’s not like the evils of slavery need to be given an agitprop reshaping…). Like the bestial violence, the photography and production design are vivid, and most of the performances are adequate or better, but true-believer Nat’s relentless nobility and righteous anger make it harder to accept instances of scenery-gumming hatred in small roles. There’s also a certain lack of overarching perspective—not necessarily a drawback (steely focus actually ranks among its refreshing attributes)—but this means that the ending has an overwrought, Spike Lee-style flourish that feels unearned in context. Parker also wrote the screenplay (story credit shared with Jean McGianni Celestin) and co-produced.

54/100