One Night in Miami: Review

Not so hidden figures

There is a scene early on in One Night in Miami that perfectly captures what the film is getting at. Visiting an old friend in the South of America, African-American NFL player Jim Brown (Aldi’s Hodge) is praised for all of his work on the field, but is then left speechless when the same man says he can’t have any black people in his house. This tension between celebrity and race relations is at the heart of Regina King’s powerful directorial debut, which presents a complex portrayal of both its subject and its larger-than-life black icons.

Drawing its story from its critically acclaimed stage play by Kemp Powers, the film quickly gets us acquainted with our main players - NFL star Jim Brown, who is considering a career change to acting, boxer Cassius Clay (Eli Goree), later Muhammad Ali, celebrated jazz singer Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.), and political activist Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir). After the surprise boxing victory of Cassius over Sonny Liston in 1964, it imagines what might have gone down when the four men came together to celebrate in a motel in Miami, and ended up discussing their different levels of involvement in the civil rights movement.

For a film based on fiction, One Night in Miami feels incredibly authentic. As it was originally a play, the film is essentially one long dialogue set within one space, but the schisms between them are believable and engaging enough to convince you it actually happened. Much of this division comes down to Malcolm X, who encourages his commercially minded friends to use their celebrity to help fight the white man, while he wrestled with his on fateful decision to leave the Nation of Islam.

Given that there is a lot of talking, it helps that King has found a stunning cast - all relative newcomers - who prove more than up to the challenge of bringing these legends to life. Ben-Adir may have had to deal with the shadow of Washington’s Oscar-winning portrayal, but he manages to craft a performance that stands up in its own right. Nailing Malcolm’s speech pattern and sense of righteousness, he also communicates the paranoia, frustration and torment that the man was going through near the end of his life, delivering impassioned speeches that the man himself might have been proud of. As Clay, Goree effortlessly captures the arrogance and swagger of the man before he made his conversion to Islam, so much that at one point he is referred to as a “giant fucking baby”. They might not be as central to the plot, but Odom Jr. also leaves a lasting impression as the smooth-talking Cooke, while Hodge impressed with a quiet yet impactful performance as the more reserved Brown.

There isn’t much in the way of event, and if you are expecting any drama, you might leave feeling slightly short changed. However, as a moment in time that precedes major changes in social attitudes, One Night in Miami remains a truly fascinating watch. King, in her first film as director, shows a strong grasp of the themes of the play, using the differences between these four men to explore the nature of celebrity, and how much responsibility comes with it. It makes for some arresting arguments and squabbles - particularly that between Malcolm and Cooke, who finds himself accused of making music to please white people, rather than helping liberate his own people. However, it also finds time for moments of surprising levity, like when one character interjects a heated discussion with “Malcolm will you please have some damn ice cream?”. Lending a sense of levity to its thought-provoking subject matter, it is a perfect film for our dark times.

Exploring the difficult line between celebrity and social responsibility, King’s directorial debut is as assured as they come - thoughtful, funny and perfectly performed by its leading quartet.

★★★★