Actors deciding to take a step back and go behind the camera is something we should celebrating more and more. Depending how long they’ve been acting, it’s a nice change of pace to see what other talents they have in store. Actors like Clint Eastwood, Ben Affleck, Mel Gibson and Angeline Jolie are prime example of actors/actresses who can do both. But that directorial debut is the most important step on becoming a filmmaker, and it’s no easy thing to accomplish. Making a good movie might be the hardest thing to ever attempt to do, but there have been a great amount of success over the vast course of film history. Frank Darabont struck gold when he made, and what might be considered the greatest movie ever, with The Shawshank Redemption back in 1994. The great and effective filmmaker, Quentin Tarantino had to make Reservoir Dogs before het finally got a name for himself and built up the great reputation he has now. Even a man like Jordan Peele, who’s famously known for his work in comedy, particularly with the American sketch comedy television series Key & Peele, surprised the world when he made his directorial debut with Get Out back in the first quarter of 2017. Two years after that, Peele stuck around the horror genre once more with the film Us with a bigger and more grander effect. Actors should take more risks in their career, even if it doesn’t pan out the way they wanted it to. Regina King, who is without question one of the greatest working actresses in the business, proved that she had a crisp and sharp eye for telling a story behind the camera in One Night in Miami. One Night in Miami is is a powerful and staggering directorial debut from the wickedly talented Regina King. There’s incredible performances from the entire cast and it offers a great sense of assessment on certain political issues and a great sense of humanization on real life figures.
Set in the city of Miami, Florida in 1964, Cassius Clay, Jim Brown, Sam Cooke and Malcom X settle down for the night at a hotel to discuss the impact and what kind of roles they serve during the cultural disorder during the 1960s.
As stated earlier on, Regina King already has an impressive body of work. She’s an Oscar winning actress from the movie If Beale Street Could Talk, she served as the main role in HBO’s Watchmen and she even had a role on the CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory. The woman is capable of any thing and after seeing One Night in Miami, not only does it solidify that comment, but it makes us want to see more of her directing in the future. Regina King gives so much life and weight with each frame in this movie that you as an audience are able to fully breathe in every artifact on screen and with One Night in Miami set during America in the 1960s, the movie also works as en effective period piece. What really stood out in One Night in Miami is the camera movement that Regina King decided to use. Yeah, one could make an argument that camera work is a style that we’ve seen before, but it almost felt that Regina King was approaching this movie like a stage play, which is interesting because this movie is based off of a play that debuted in 2013. Some might not necessarily care for the staginess that this movie has, but it was an impressive and unique filmmaking technique that King utilized and it worked well in her favor.
If you think Regina King’s direction is impressive, One Night in Miami is also a great showcase of some of the best performances you’ll see all year but the problem that needs to be discussed is that it’s a challenge to decide who gave the better performance. Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree and Aldis Hodge are people you might be able to recognize but might not have strong roles or strong material to display their true talent, but in One Night in Miami, this is by far their best work to date. Leslie Odom Jr., on the other hand, is someone you’ll definitely be able to recognize, due to his work from the successful and pop culture phenomenon Hamilton. Leslie Odom Jr. might be one of the most gifted singers to ever hum a melody and his performance in One Night in Miami is full of nuance, dexterity and ease. By bringing Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown, and Sam Cooke to life in this movie, One Night in Miami beautifully and organically humanizes them as well rounded and fully dimensional characters. The entire last half of the movie is primarily focused on these four men and each of them give admiration and respect to the people they are portraying.
Aside from having some slight pacing issues, One Night in Miami is an astounding achievement for Regina King. It’s full of great performances, wonderful camera work and a great demonstration of grounding historical figures. It proves that Regina King is a masterclass talent, both in front and behind the camera and it leaves you with a great sense of pride knowing this kind of talent exists.
My grade for One Night Miami: A
Zane's take at the Cinema's 