‘Blindspotting’ Is A Visceral Showcase For Carlos López Estrada and Daveed Diggs [Sundance Review]

PARK CITY – Balancing dramatic and broadly comedic elements in a movie can be fraught with pitfalls for a filmmaker. Especially when the subject matter tackles racism, police brutality and an oppressive judicial system. In many ways that’s what makes Carlos López Estrada‘s direction of “Blindspotting,” which debuted Thursday night at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, so uniquely impressive.

Set in contemporary Oakland, California, “Blindspotting” was written by Rafael Casal and Daveed Diggs (Broadway’s “Hamilton”) who also star in the film as Miles and Collin respectively.  An ex-con, Collin is just a few days away from ending his one-year probation at a halfway house. He spends his time working for a moving company alongside Miles that also employs his ex-girlfriend, Val (Janina Gavankar, very good), and is usually rushing to get back to his room by his court-set 11 PM curfew.

During his last week on probation, Collin finds himself impatiently waiting for a red light to change so he make the deadline when a black man bumps into the front of his truck. The man is being chased by an Oakland police officer (Ethan Embry, almost unrecognizable) that shoots him dead right in front of Collin. Shook to his core by the experience, Collin finds himself haunted by the man’s death and a fear of being sent back to jail because of it. Collin is also increasingly aware that his lifelong friend Miles is putting both their lives in danger by his reckless behavior. When Miles buys a gun it gets into the hands of his young son Sean (Ziggy Baitinger, as cute as required) much to the horror of everyone involved including the mother of Miles’ son, Ashley (Jasmine Cephas Jones, wish there was more of her). The incident starts a chain reaction as the two men confront each other about their true place in a society that will always see Collin as black ex-con who could be gunned down without cause because he is presumed guilty, and Miles as a white man who is systematically presumed innocent.

“Blindspotting” is a love letter to Oakland as it celebrates the city’s unique history and delivers a number of sharp and often funny jabs to its increasing gentrification. Casal and Diggs are natives of the East Bay and clearly have a lot of anecdotal evidence of the ignorance of the city’s new, upscale residents. Nothing is more disturbing for Collin and Miles than attending a house party of a rich software development executive who attempts to speak to them in stereotypical ghetto language as he shows off the trunk of a 140-year old Oakland tree he’s now using as a coffee table.

While Casal, a noted poet and music artist, impresses in what amounts to his first major screen acting role, it’s Diggs who proves he’s a genuine movie star. The 35-year-old actor, rapper and, now, screenwriter is absolutely fantastic as a man trying to understand himself instead of the stereotype the public and his own friends and family assume he is. It’s at times a heartbreaking and often searing performance. Both men have such natural charisma and confidence on screen together that they often wash away some of the bumpier aspects of the script (including an admittedly powerful climax that is the only thing that seems slightly out of place in the context of the entire film).

Despite Casal and Diggs contributions, “Blindspotting” simply would not work without Estrada’s creative vision. The commercial and music video director simply delivers one of the more accomplished directorial debuts in recent memory. Estrada clearly was aware of the screenplay’s unconventional voice and uses different lenses, some beautifully lit scenes (the best work of cinematographer Robby Baumgartner’s career) and some awards-worthy sound design to create an Oakland you recognize, but that on screen often has a surreal otherworldly vibe to it. The filmmaker also masterfully handles a story that features comedic flashbacks that could fall completely flat in the wrong hands and a nightmare sequence that is more memorable than you’d expect.  Every shot is perfectly framed and, more importantly, framed for a purpose. The surreal images that Collin experiences somehow feel fresh and new. In this world of non-stop content overload that’s extremely hard to pull off.

Yes, you’ll likely leave the theater blown away by Casal and Diggs’ considerable talent, but its Estrada’s vision that will haunt you. He’s not only one to watch, he’s a director you should be celebrating as a new cinematic auteur. Can’t give much higher praise than that. [B+]

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