Terrifying timely, heartbreaking drama

Rating: 7/10 (3 June 2020)

Detroit is an intense & heartbreaking drama, that is terrifyingly timely right now.
Opening with an animated sequence of Jacob Lawrence's 'The Migration Series', Bigelow skilfully uses this as a storyboard to contextualise historic events & illustrate racial tensions.
The raid of a speakeasy by the police erupts into civil unrest, sparking protests, looting & fire-bombs. During these scenes, a hand held camera is used & real news footage is interwoven - creating a very realistic and immersive experience.
Amidst all of the chaos, we are introduced to Dismukes, a security guard & friends Larry (lead singer of The Dramatics) & Fred (their manager) as they all find themselves at the Algiers Motel. From here, Detroit hones in on three white policemen, Larry, Fred, Dismukes & other residents at the motel - during a night long heart-pounding, torturous episode of abuse (the lingering shots of eyes filled with tears & lips whispering prayers was extremely difficult to watch).
I was blown away by Will Poulter's acting (having only seen him in We're the Millers). Playing Krauss, a bigoted and callous police officer with a penchant for violence & mind games, Krauss and his fellow officers' deep intolerance for Black people; and indeed white women mixing with black men is both terrifying & idiotic. I haven't watched a film for a while that has been so infuriating.
The emotion Algee Smith brings to the role of Larry Reed is sublime. The aftermath of the tragic night at the Motel stands out as the most heartbreaking part for me personally.
John Boyega was excellent as Dismukes, a man who tries to mediate the situation - gaining distrust from both sides as he tackles with his race, his uniform & fear. Jacob Latimore as Fred was also tremendous, and his end was truly unjust.
From state troopers/national guards that turned a blind eye to the abuse happening at the Motel, to the "death game" - I think what's spine-chilling about this film is that the events depicted are real & these issues are still relevant 50+ years later.