[CRITICAL] BLINDSPOTTING

For his first film presented at the Festival of Sundance in the category of U.S. Dramatic Competition , BLINDSPOTTING, Carlos López Estrada offers a deep reflection on the police violence packed in a staged funky bold.

Can we talk about serious topics by tossing in a staged happily flashy and musically connected ? Yes, we can ! The director Carlos López Estrada has proved with his first film BLINDSPOTTING, screened-in opening of the Festival of Sundance in the category of U.S. DRAMATIC.

From the outset, the director gives the film a tone daring, original, and committed, quite in the spirit of Sundance. But it is especially Rafael Casal and Daveed Diggs, the two coscénaristes, actors and film producers, who are at the origin of the project. BLINDSPOTTING, this is the baby shot in 22 days, but wore it for 10 years, by these two artists, freestyle rappers slameurs little known in France. Friends from childhood as their two heroes, they grew up in Oakland, which they said yesterday after the screening of the film the city is the main character of the film.

Because what is interesting and quite innovative in BLINDSPOTTING, it is the depth of the topics, with (and despite) a scene very cheerful and colorful. The film is in this sense think of the satirical comedy Dear White People by Justin Simien, who had also received an award at Sundance in 2014 and the british series shifted Chewing Gum of Michaela Coel. It is funny, it is fresh with some very cool effects transposition of the character of Collin from one scene to the other.

Both writers look on their city is as much economic as social. Because the gentrification of Oakland is at the heart of the film. The evocation of the transformation of neighbourhoods that do not house people of color, in favor of more-affluent areas with white people is very well highlighted thanks to the go of Miles and Collin. They work for a moving company and emptied sometimes of the historic houses that will be destroyed, to be replaced by beautiful houses.

“BLINDSPOTTING is a little gem of inventiveness is refreshing and stunning, which denounces skillfully violence committed by white police officers against blacks, and the fear and tension in which people live.”

The title of the film comes from the term Blindspot, which means dead angle, very well found since, from a symbolic point of view, the two men will also be obliged to go and see beyond their own blind spot. In a few days, they will transform their own view on themselves, on their identity, their friendship, multicultural, but also on the police violence that reigns in the city toward people of color.

Collin has been convicted of a crime of violence and is at the end of the period of probation. The film takes place on the last three days, during which time he tries to stick to tile in spite of the temptations immature of Miles. He has matured during his stay in prison and finds himself at odds with Miles. The two characters are very endearing, and their friendship will be put to bad use. Witness the murder of a young colored man by a white policeman, the consciousness of Collin the works and upsets him in spite of himself. His nightmares and the beginning of a paranoia at the heart of these three days so important will get them to take a position, perhaps even to reveal to her a political conscience.

However, the dramatic turn that takes the movie several times, and the moments of emotions that cross the heroes do ever question the bias of funky of the director, who assumes all along the same tone and the pace. And it is perhaps at this level that one feels a little too much, which would have deserved at times less frills claquantes. A little as it manages to do fantastically well with the scene more watered down and cold in the cemetery, which appear next to their graves of dozens of black men killed.

Even if we can also blame the film its very american with the replicas slamées, BLINDSPOTTING is a little gem of inventiveness is refreshing and astonishing, which denounces skillfully violence committed by white police officers against blacks -a subject that returns to the news a few years ago – and the fear and tension in which people live.

Sylvie-Noelle

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