A new feature film by Spike Lee.
Whenever a new film by a renowned director is released, it is a mandatory watch for all film fans. The new production by Spike Lee has been highly anticipated and was originally to be premiered at the Cannes film festival. Now Da 5 Bloods has instead had its premiere on Netflix, and sparked many discussions, especially as it is - as is often the case in Lee's films - dealing with issue of race.
Da 5 Bloods originally started out as a film project about American veterans of the Vietnam War who return to the country much later, once with Oliver Stone attached and white characters in the script. When Spike Lee took over, this turned into a film about African American veterans, and the challenges they faced during and after the war. The film is mainly set in the present when the veterans return to Vietnam to recover the remains of their friend who was killed in action, but there are some flashbacks to the war time as well.
Reviews and ratings of this film vary greatly, with reviews from 2 to 10 out of 10 points/stars etc. I can understand some of the arguments from both sides, so here are the few most important points (without spoilers). The film is rather long (2h 34m), and some plot elements seem somewhat far-fetched. The mixture of real footage (in the form of photographs and video) and newly shot footage (both in past and present) might seem strange to some audiences, but is not unusual for Spike Lee's style of filmmaking. I agree that in previous productions (especially in BlacKKKlansman and Malcolm X) this has been more effective, but I still think the added material makes sense related to this topic.
The plot deals with many different things at once, which is certainly one of the issues of this film. Lee tries to incorporate the racial situation in the 60s and 70s in the USA including the riots, as well as the fate of African Americans in the military in general and specifically related to their treatment upon returning from Vietnam, as well as reparations for African Americans. Many ideas are great and his motives are certainly admirable, but the film doesn't always manage to bring them all together in a cohesive way. If you are, however, interested in these topics, then the film is worth watching either way, even if it is not perfect.
Some elements are a bonus for film fans, such as some references to Apocalypse Now, and the cast is overall great (with a few unconvincing moments being the exception). Established actors such as Delroy Lindo, Norm Lewis and Clark Peters carry the film, with some supporting performances by Chadwick Boseman (Black Panther), Jean Reno (Léon) and Paul Walter Hauser (Richard Jewell) and more. Some political criticism of Trump is not surprising, but partly done in quite a funny way (involving a MAGA hat).
Overall, definitely worth watching for fans of Spike Lee, Delroy Lindo and Vietnam films in general, as well as filmgoers interested in the perspective of African Americans. While it isn't the masterpiece one might have hoped for, my main criticism is that it is trying to achieve too much at the same time - which is not the worst kind of failure.
(See also my post on Spike Lee for further film tips which might be more digestible to some audiences, especially if war films are too bloody for you.)
The trailer of Da 5 Bloods:
An interview of director Spike Lee with TV show host Trevor Noah:
(Images: IMDB/Netflix)