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Spike Lee asserted his preeminence among black filmmakers by virtually insisting that he direct Malcolm X, a Warner Bros. project that Lee wrested away from white director Norman Jewison. Based on Malcolm X's autobiography (as told to Alex Haley), Malcolm X stars Denzel Washington as the eponymous freedom fighter, and through an exceedingly deft use of flashbacks, it tells the whole story of the man's life. We see his salad days as a street hustler, his imprisonment for burglary, his conversion to Islam, his work as a disciple of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad (Al Freeman Jr.), and finally his assassination in 1965. Washington is extraordinary in the lead, effortlessly reproducing the charisma that served Malcolm X so well, whether in the service of crime or politics. A superb supporting cast includes Angela Bassett as Malcolm X's wife, Betty Shabazz, and Lee himself as one of Malcolm X's early partners in crime. Beautifully photographed by Lee's longtime cinematographer Ernest Dickerson, Malcolm X has an evocative period ambience and an epic sweep. Lee pulls precious few punches here, bringing the great man's frequently confrontational politics directly to the screen. The result is a film that angered many, touched many more, and is perhaps the most important film ever made about the black experience in America. Gregory Baird

All Movie Guide

Writer-director Spike Lee's epic portrayal of the life and times of the slain civil rights leader Malcolm X begins with the cross-cut imagery of the police beating of black motorist Rodney King juxtaposed with an American flag burning into the shape of the letter X. When the film's narrative begins moments later, it jumps back to World War II-era Boston, where Malcolm Little (Denzel Washington) is making his living as a hustler. The son of a Baptist preacher who was murdered by the Ku Klux Klan, Little was raised by foster parents after his mother was deemed clinically insane; as an adult, he turned to a life of crime, which leads to his imprisonment on burglary charges. In jail, Little receives epiphany in the form of an introduction to Islam; he is especially taken with the lessons of Elijah Mohammed, who comes to him in a vision. Adopting the name 'Malcolm X' as a rejection of the 'Little' surname (given his family by white slave owners), he meets the real Elijah Mohammed (Al Freeman, Jr.) upon exiting prison, and begins work as a spokesman for the Nation of Islam. Marriage to a Muslim nurse named Betty Shabazz (Angela Bassett) follows, after which X spearheads a well-attended march on a Harlem hospital housing a Muslim recovering from an episode of police brutality. The march's success helps elevate X to the position of Islam's national spokesperson. There is dissension in the ranks, however, and soon X is targeted for assassination by other Nation leaders; even Elijah Mohammed fears Malcolm's growing influence. After getting wind of the murder plot, X leaves the Nation of Islam, embarking on a pilgrimage to Mecca that proves revelatory; renouncing his separatist beliefs, his oratories begin embracing all races and cultures. During a 1965 speech, Malcolm X is shot and killed, reportedly by Nation of Islam members. Jason Ankeny

All Movie Guide

Spike Lee's comprehensive film biography of the slain civil rights leader Malcolm X is much more than the depiction of a great man's life. It is a film that shows, through the powerful story of one man, a person's ability to reinvent himself and change his life. It is fueled by a towering, charismatic performance by Denzel Washington as Malcolm X (Washington had previously played Malcolm in the early 1980s in an off-Broadway play, When the Chickens Come Home To Roost). The film breaks Malcolm X's life down into three acts. The first deals with the troubled childhood of Malcolm Little, whose father is murdered by the Ku Klux Klan and whose mother is institutionalized for insanity. Malcolm grows up and gets a job as a Pullman porter, calling himself Detroit Red. Getting involved with Harlem gangster West Indian Archie (Delroy Lindo), Malcolm finds himself in prison. The second section follows his life in prison, where a fellow inmate, Baines (Albert Hall), introduces him to the teachings of the Nation of Islam. The third section follows Malcolm's religious conversion as a messianic disciple of the Honorable Elijah Mohammed (Al Freeman Jr.). During this fervent immersion into the Nation of Islam, he becomes an incendiary speaker for the movement and marries Betty Shabazz (Angela Bassett). Malcolm X preaches a doctrine of hate against the white man, but a pilgrimage to Mecca softens his beliefs and he endeavors to break free of the strict dogma of the Nation of Islam, with tragic results. Paul Brenner

Product Details

• UPC: 883929104772
• Source: WARNER HOME VIDEO
• Time: 3:25:00
• Sales Rank: 3,675