One Night in Miami 2020
This movie got a lot of acclaim when it came out, but it seems like maybe it was in theaters only briefly before going to Amazon Prime. Based on a play, it tells of a fictionalized get together of Muhammed Ali (still going as Cassius Clay), Malcolm X, Sam Cooke, and Jim Brown just after Ali beat Sonny Liston to become world champ at age 22. Meanwhile Jim Brown is the best player in the NFL, but has gotten the acting bug after appearing in one movie. And Malcolm X is breaking with the Nation of Islam, which will lead to his assassination a year later. While the meeting happened and the outside events are true, nobody really knows what they talked about. Instead the movie is based on a play and therefore the setting is fairly sparse (mostly a motel room) and very focused on dialogue. These are interesting people and their take on the very interesting events of the day make for a great watch. The four share great admiration, but also have some conflicting ideas, and it is great to see how people can have similar goals and still have so much disagreement. There are also some personal things going on that come out and paint a more complete picture of these characters. I really like this kind of thing so it is no surprise that I really enjoyed this movie. It is nice that for this movie, Leslie Odum, Jr. (as Sam Cooke) got to be in the room where it happened, unlike in Hamilton.
Written: 28 Oct 2024