It’s odd that there are two comedies currently playing that hinge on black men sounding white on the phone, but here we are. BlacKkKlansman is an exceptionally stylish adaptation of a 2014 memoir by Ron Stallworth (John David Washington), the first black police officer in Colorado Springs. In the mid-70s, Stallworth and a white stand-in (Adam Driver) infiltrated the Klan and became phone buddies with national leader David Duke (Topher Grace). Director Spike Lee is never subtle – the film’s wives and girlfriends are its most outspoken ideologues – and he’s not shy about connecting some dots that the audience (hopefully) doesn’t need connected, but the intensity builds until a big operatic finale. Harry Belafonte even makes a cameo.
BlacKkKlansman is currently playing at Showcase Cinemas (Providence Place/Warwick only), Cinemaworld Lincoln, Mystic Luxury Cinemas, and Regal Cinemas Bellingham
