Review of Detroit (2017) by Maksim B — 29 May 2018

Overlong and somehow disconnected with the audiences, Detroit is a gut-wrenching and bold take on one of the darkest racially-loaded moments of the US contemporary history. Kathryn Bigelow's period drama is raw, brutal and thought-provoking while it also feels so contemporary despite its "documentary touch.

The story of what happened in a motel in Detroit during the 1967 riots has been one of the most shocking examples of institutional racism so sitting in the director's chair to a make a movie out of it is nothing but an extremely challenging task. Unfortunately, the first half of the movie seems quite disconnects as it takes too long to set up the social, economic and racial atmosphere of these tumultuous years. Yet, once the background is set and everyone finds himself in the motel, the story becomes a gripping and sometimes even violently disgusting depiction of events which enraged a nation. With a trembling, hand-held camera, director Kathryn Bigelow does an outstanding job in the second half of the movie. The most shocking part of it is that many may actually relate some these moments with the present environment.

If we delve deeper in the cinematographic quality of Detroit, it should be mentioned that a huge role for the movie's grim and tensed atmosphere is to be attributed to the flawless cast. Special attention should be paid to Will Poulter's manic and violent acting, which can totally give the shivers to the audience.

In the end, you will be left shaken with the story's final so you will most certainly be googling around for further information. In conclusion, Detroit succeeds to provoke and to shock, but it will not be wrong if stated that the movie could have been a bit "tighter" and more connected to the audience in the first part of it. Still a delivery worth-seeing.