After the release of BlacKkKlansman, there was some criticism regarding the film’s seemingly “pro-cop” leanings, Sorry To Bother You filmmaker, Boots Riley, was one of the most vocal about this perspective. I loved the film when it came out, you can read my review here, and I still do. There is some validity to the way police in, not only Spike Lee’s film, but in media in general are portrayed. I think the portrayal in BlacKkKlansman is a bit more complex than just being simply pro-police, as Lee’s work has always brought a critical eye to authority and those that uphold the status quo. And that continues with his new film, Da 5 Bloods, where he brings his focus on the Vietnam war from the perspective of Black soldiers.
Taking place in modern day, with a few flashbacks sprinkled here and there, we follow the titular Bloods, who are a group of Black Vietnam vets. We have Paul (Delroy Lindo), Otis (Clarke Peters), Eddie (Norm Lewis), and Melvin (Isiah Whitlock Jr.), who meet up in Vietnam to look for not only the remains of their fallen comrade, the fifth blood, Norman (Chadwick Boseman), who died in battle, but also locate gold that they buried during the war after recovering it from a downed CIA plane.
With the help of Tiên (Lê Y Lan), a former sex worker that Otis was involved with turned financial broker, who gets the group of guys in touch with the shady French businessman, Desroche (Jean Reno), who agrees to help them get the gold out of the country. But the guys aren’t alone as Paul’s son, David (Jonathan Majors), pops in by surprise. However, as their journey goes on, they are dealt with several complications, both in dangers faced in the jungle as well as the lasting effects of the war that continues to haunt them.
The legacy of the Vietnam war is a heavy weight carried by countless individuals on both side of the war, and Lee and his co-writer, Kevin Willmott, who together re-wrote the original spec by Danny Bilson and Paul De Meo, explore the messy contradictions that come with the idea of a Black soldier going off to fight in a war while still not having the rights they were promised back home. The opening sets it off, playing the famous clip of Muhammad Ali talking about his refusal to fight in the war.
In typical Spike Lee fashion, the film is heavily informed by and constantly commenting on culture, through various nods, references, and homages to iconic war films like Apocalypse Now to jokes about Hollywood’s attempts to win the war on-screen with films like Rambo, to the use of tracks from Marvin Gaye’s classic 1971 album, “What’s Going On,” which was a concept album that was heavily informed by the war, and its effects on veterans once they came back home.
The actors are all fantastic here, each effortlessly selling their camaraderie. However, who ends up standing out far above the rest is Delroy Lindo as Paul. Paul is a complicated guy, who has a strained relationship with his son. He’s also a Trump supporter, spending most of the film wearing a MAGA hat, but the move isn’t just empty provocation on Lee’s part, as it showcases the way Trump’s rhetoric easily preys on those who are vulnerable and alienated. Haunted by his time in Vietnam, there’s a sense of rage, self-hatred, and pathos in every moment he’s on screen, and it pushes an already great movie into something genuinely special.
Da 5 Bloods has a two-and-a-half hour runtime that might seem intimidating at first, but Lee’s craftsmanship is as on point as it has ever been, filled with anger, humor, and plenty of style to spare in its moments of grandeur as well as its moments of intimacy. The work from cinematographer, Newton Thomas Sigel, and composer, Terence Blanchard, is evocative, methodical, and totally alive. The performances are strong all around, not just from the main cast, but also from supporting players like Jasper Pääkkönen, Paul Walter Hauser, and Mélanie Thierry. If there are any qualms to have, it might be with its pacing, which is a touch more slower than you’d expect, and there are a couple threads here and there that kind of get lost in the shuffle. However, any issues are ultimately minor in comparison to what Spike Lee and his cast and crew are able to accomplish here. Treating Black bodies as disposable tools of white supremacy and American imperialism is a messy and complicated subject, but Lee’s approach, while not necessarily a complete picture, is done with a stirring relevance and fearlessness that shows he is still able to capture the pulse of the zeitgeist better than pretty much anyone else out there.