Cool, Creative, Compelling, and Conscious in its Execution

Rating: 8/10 (12 June 2020)

In a time of turmoil and injustice, comes a very welcome freshly rolled Spike Lee joint, and man, it's got all kinds of strains in it. "Da 5 Bloods" is a huge canvas colored so richly it's almost hard to take it all in at once, painted by Spike Lee with his stylistic bravura and extraordinary cinematic shifts. It's not a flawless movie, but it is a beautiful one in its own right, a history lesson, a statement, an exploration and an amazing entry in the Vietnam War film canon.
We follow Paul, Otis, Eddie and Melvin, four African-American Vietnam war vets, who return to Vietnam in the modern day, seeking the remains of their fallen Squad Leader Stormin' Norman and the box of gold they buried together - return to a new (and same) war as they meet in battle with both man and nature.
Spike Lee sparks it up with a short documentarian intro, a substantial history lesson that'll continue throughout the film, about the Vietnam war, the race war in USA, about the social injustices, hurts and consequences in both places of the world. In the first act we get acquainted with the bloods as they land in Vietnam and prepare for the journey - this is where most of comedy is present, giving an impression that the movie, its both playful and raggedy, experienced characters, and issues and history at exploration will be presented in a warmer light. Little did one expect, the tonal shifts, like its story-telling and aesthetical style, is off the charts. And that's something I really loved about this film. During all acts, flashbacks from the actual Vietnam war are frequent, telling the story about da 5 bloods, completed with Stormin' Norman, shot on film, real old-school style. The second act is the most adventurous one, marking the bloods return to the jungle, positively adventurous, until it's not... Not only there are shifts in genre, but also in the morality of the film, which is indeed one of its points. The broad story Lee tells is infused with various cultural legacies, historical points of view, morales and emotions, and under the mass of themes, the focus on the main characters does not flicker one bit. The summary is perhaps a little inconsistent, lacking a tightly weaved plot and sometimes feeling more episodic than not, but it is also compelling, highly ambitious and profound. This guy dropped a tear or two.
What needs to be talked about are the performances, the whole cast does a great and admirable job, with the favorites undoubtedly being the five pivotal characters. But if there is a spotlight, I believe it's not up to much debate who it belongs to. I hope there is critical acclaim and awards coming to Delroy Lindo, who plays the movie's most complicated, conflicted and hurting character, and does so devotedly, inspiring awe. Under Spike Lee's direction, the veteran actor delivers an absolute knockout performance, worthy of remembrance. One of my absolute favorites of 2020 so far.
The visual side of things here are also every bit as amazing, though I can see how the sum of this can land on somebody's not so great part of critique. Throughout the 190 minutes, "Da 5 Bloods" go through at least 4 different aspect ratios, three different cinematography styles and a subtle documentarian touch all throughout. The sauce of all this is, in my humble opinion, chaotic in a good sense, well drawn together regardless of the choice of brush. It is likely that it adds an important dynamic for such a long movie. "Da 5 Bloods", when it gets down and dirty, is also explicitly violent and doesn't shy away from appearing realistic in terms of action. I was initially quite concerned about the runtime, but it proved to be well worth it, and the slower parts in fact belong to the first act, which I've always believed is better than to keep the milder, less engaging or intense bits for the second half.
"Da 5 Bloods" is an important, socially and politically conscious and accomplished message, an exercise in telling parts of history that many are blind to - to this day. Additionally, it's a fiery movie that's equal parts entertaining and compelling. Regardless of what Your thoughts on Spike Lee might be, he has creativity and cool ideas stuffed in all of his pockets, a sound mind and heart in the right place. My rating: 8/10.