Melina Matsoukas, known mostly for her work on music videos and television, breaks out as a powerful new director with her feature film debut, Queen & Slim. This romance turned road-tripping crime drama has been described as "the black Bonnie and Clyde", but these complex characters were a lot closer to Thelma and Louise.
While on a disappointing first date, Slim (Daniel Kaluuya of Get Out), and Queen (Jodie Turner-Smith, in her first starring role) are driving home when an encounter with an aggressive police officer during a routine traffic stop turns tragic. They flee Ohio, heading south towards Cuba. When the dashcam video of the incident goes viral, the pair is transformed by the public into unlikely folk heroes.
This is not an action-packed crime film. The movie meanders, the story being more concerned with their journey, the colorful characters they meet, and what they learn about America and each other along the way. The script is tight, the directing stylized and almost languid at times. The acting is terrific, with Bokeem Woodbine as Queen's Uncle Earl, an Iraq War veteran with a complicated past, standing out in a minor role. None of these characters are one dimensional. Queen doesn't always make the best choices, but real humans are more complicated than movie characters, and this film doesn't forget that.
Astonishingly relevant to our current political and cultural climate, I recommend you give Queen & Slim a spot on your viewing schedule.
Patricia Pirillo