'Black is King' Review

Friday, 7 August 2020 03:19

 
TV-14Runtime: 1 Hr and 25 MinutesProduction Company: Parkwood EntertainmentDistributor: Disney+Directors: Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Emmanuel Adjei, Kwasi Fordjour, Blitz Bazawule, Ibra Ake, Jenn Nkiru, Jake Nava, Pierre Debusschere, Dikayl RimmaschWriters: Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Yrsa Daley-Ward, Clover Hope, Andrew MorrowCast: Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, Lupita Nyong’o, Kelly Rowland, Pharrell Williams, Tina Knowles-Lawson, Naomi Campbell, Blue Ivy Carter, Yemi Alade, Wizkid, Rumi Carter, Sir Carter, Shatta WaleRelease Date: July 31, 2020
A young African king is cast out from his family and into an unforgiving world. He subsequently undergoes a journey "through betrayal, love, and self-identity" to reclaim his throne, utilizing the guidance of his ancestors and childhood love. The story is told through the voices of present-day Black artists.
Beyoncé. Her name alone is so powerful. She is a household name who is universally beloved by everyone. Beyoncé is to music as Scorsese is to film. She is an unstoppable force of nature who can’t do anything wrong, and even when she stumbles — which she has — her BeyHive will come to her defense. She has delivered nothing but banger albums since 2011’s 4. Yes, this is me admitting that I Am… Sasha Fierce was just okay. DON’T CLOSE THE TAB YET!
Ever since the surprise that was Lemonade, which was both inspiring and empowering for Black women, Beyoncé took the world by storm in a way that she had never experienced before. Between that and her Netflix film Homecoming, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has become a bonafide filmmaker. Her latest film, Black is King, the visual accompaniment to The Gif— I mean, *sigh* The Lion King: The Gift, is proof that Beyoncé is one of the greatest visionaries in both film and music.It’s hard to express what Black is King truly is. Yes, it’s a visual album, no different from the format of Lemonade. Yet, through the spellbinding imagery centered on Black culture, our legacy, and — most importantly — our power, I found this to be more of a visual odyssey, unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. Hell, “odyssey” doesn’t even sound like an accurate way to describe this rich piece of art. Yeah, that’s the word. Art. Art that reinvigorates Black excellence during a time that we desperately need it. No wonder the album is called The Gift because this is truly something that I needed for my mental, physical, and spiritual wellbeing. Since I am writing this after the release of the film — Disney didn’t give anyone an early screener — many people, especially Black people, can agree that one of the film’s strongest attributes is how it provides powerful, positive images of Black people from various African backgrounds and societies, from agricultural to urban, and displays their beauty, exhibiting them like royalty. Hence, the title Black is King. The visuals bear an abundant amount of eye-popping imagery that is culturally profound. It’s clear that Beyoncé and her team conducted profound research and/or brought their own African backgrounds to the forefront. It really inspired me to look into the roots of my own African background and educate myself on the significance of the images Beyoncé showcased. The narrative follows the same flow as the source material… or, I guess, the source material of the source material… where it retells the story of The Lion King (thanks to the dialogue interludes from the album) in its own way. It truly is a celebration of Black history that retains the source’s themes of birthright and legacy. I must commend screenwriters Beyoncé, Yrsa Daley-Ward, and Clover Hope, who were able to craft a beautiful and well-constructed story out of something that was very much a corporate cash-grab piece of garbage. Man, it took Beyoncé of all people to create an unforgettable, culturally profound version of The Lion King out of its terrible remake. That’s just how powerful she is. 
I can’t stress enough how outstandingly beautiful the entire project is. Seeing the tracks I’ve been bopping to since summer 2019 come to life in such an exuberant, energetic, powerful manner seriously brings me joy. Truthfully, it makes me feel inspired. I’ve been in an emotional rut for a while due to the current state of the world, but Black is King brought joy back into my soul and gives me both hope and inspiration. It gives me hope that we will experience unlimited prosperity. It gives me hope that I will continue to be a voice for my generation, while also recognizing how impactful my legacy, among other great Black voices, will be in the future. This was such an out of body cinematic — God, I hope to watch this in a theater someday –– experience. Nothing gives me more joy than watching the visual for “Brown Skin Girl” and seeing Lupita Nyong’o onscreen mouthing the lyrics, “Pretty like Lupita when the cameras close in,” when just last year she posted a joyful reaction video in response to being mentioned in the song. I love seeing the adorable Blue Ivy Carter sing her solo and stand beside her mama. The “Keys to the Kingdom” visual involves Black people of all cultures being happy and living their lives. The image that stuck with me the most is the sequence of a woman’s braid on fire, yet no damage is done to that braid because it is powerful like the woman herself. The Oscars changed their rules so that if a film goes to streaming, it’s still eligible for the following year’s award ceremony. With that in mind, I’m predicting that Black is King will bag Best Costume Design and Best Cinematography. There are like, 12 cinematographers attached to this project and every single one of them deserves an Oscar, for they made each visual moment rich and mesmerizing. I kept rewinding just to admire what’s on the screen. Also, everyone was serving looks with their outfits, especially Beyoncé. Even Adele came out of hiding and posted a photo of herself wearing the same outfit as Beyoncé because she’s a stan. It doesn’t matter how many Grammys she has, Adele is a Beyoncé stan first and foremost. 
God, I love Black is King, and the album it’s attached to, but I hate the fact that this is connected to The Lion King (2019). Something about this being connected to Disney just rubs me the wrong way. I hate that this is a Disney+ exclusive film and the fact that the logo appears before the film starts. However, the main thing that often took me out of the movie was hearing the spoken dialogue from the garbage The Lion King (2019) film during the transitions. I get that it’s supposed to reflect all of The Gift, but in context to Black is King, it’s so unnecessary that it’s jarring. You go from outstanding visual sequences bolstered by originality to being reminded that this entire thing is connected to an unoriginal, uninspired, cash grab dumpster fire. The only authentic moment is the opening featuring James Earl Jones’s voice as Mufasa reciting his Circle of Life speech. Everything else, ranging from the audio of Billy Eichner as Timon to Beyoncé’s Nala going, “ARE YOU WITH ME, LIONS?!” seriously took me out. It’s so damn distracting that it’s the only thing preventing me from giving a 5-star rating. I felt the knife of Bob Iger forcing Beyoncé to include the dialogue from The Gift in the movie when Lord knows it would’ve been much better without them. But whatever, this is a perfect artistic achievement from one of the best visionaries in the industry today. Thank you Beyoncé, screw you, Disney.Rating: 4.5/5 | 92%  

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