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Film

BlacKkKlansman by Spike Lee released

Gaby Reucher rf
August 10, 2018

Donald Trump should definitely watch this film, says director Spike Lee. His newest work BlacKkKlansman references the US president's racial policies.

Filmstill «BlacKkKlansman», two men
Image: D. Lee/F. Features

The latest of several films examining the situation of Afro-Americans in the United States, Spike Lee's newest work, BlacKkKlansman, has been described as impassioned and tense, but also funny. Released in the US on August 10, the movie will be shown in German theaters beginning August 23.

Released one year after violent protests by and against neo-Nazis in Charlottesville, Virginia, the film shows footage filmed there — and Trump's infamous reaction blaming "both sides" for the violence.

Applauded in Cannes and Locarno

Based on a true story, the film tells of the black undercover agent Ron Stallworth and his Jewish colleague, who were accepted into the Ku Klux Klan in 1979. Employing the element of farce, the film draws a clear parallel to current politics and racial injustice in the USA.

John David Washington is in the main role, joined by actor Adam Driver.

Beginning his film directing career in the 1960s, Spike Lee was highly influential in the 1980s and '90s with films like She's Gotta Have It (1986) and Inside Man (2006).

Warmly applauded at this season's film festival in Locarno, BlacKkKlansman also won the Cannes Film Festival's second-highest distinction, the Grand Prix.

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