"The problem of the 20th century is the problem of the colour-line.” So wrote the Afro-American activist W.E.B. Du Bois in his famous 1903 work The Souls of Black Folk. And indeed, the century of which he spoke was dominated by issues of race, decolonisation and civil rights — the last especially so in the United States.
One of the most forceful figures of the Civil Rights Movement was Malcolm X — a man who rose from criminality and prison to become one of the most eloquent and captivating orators of the modern era. And one of the greatest tributes to the man is Spike Lee’s 1992 film Malcolm X, featuring a performance by Denzel Washington which film director Martin Scorsese lauded as “[...] one of the best in American movies.”
For Lee, The Autobiography of Malcolm X was the most important book that he had ever read, and a film about Malcolm was something that he thought he was born to do. Subsequently, despite having hitherto made relatively small films, he sought to make Malcolm X comparable in scope to David Lean epics such as The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) and Lawrence of Arabia (1962). In this he succeeded: shot on three continents and with a running time of well over three hours, the film ranges from Malcolm’s childhood in the ‘20s to his assassination in the ‘60s, while commenting on the problems of race in the ‘90s.
Spike Lee’s masterful biopic about the iconic civil rights campaigner was released 25 years ago. It remains as relevant today as in 1992
The opening title sequence at once sets a provocative tone: as Malcolm is heard castigating the white race for its crimes, we see an American flag going up in flames, intercut with real footage from the infamous 1991 videotape of black taxi driver Rodney King being severely beaten by several white police officers. Once the flag has been burned down to the shape of an “X”, the film proper begins with young Malcolm getting his hair straightened so that it “looks white”, moving on to him cheerily bouncing down the street in a flamboyant zoot suit.
The film goes on to survey Malcolm’s development as a criminal, eventual incarceration, conversion to the black nationalist ideology of the Nation of Islam (NOI), and rise within the ranks of that organisation.
Then Malcolm discovers that NOI leader Elijah Muhammad — whom he venerated — has been impregnating numerous young girls. Shattered by this revelation, and marginalised after his infamous description of the John F. Kennedy assassination as a case of “chickens coming home to roost”, Malcolm eventually leaves the NOI to create his own organisation. He visits Africa and the Middle East, performs the Haj, and comes to realise that the “Islam” touted by the race-obsessed NOI is far removed from the orthodox Islam in which Muslims of multiple races come together. The film climaxes with Malcolm’s assassination at the hands of his former NOI associates, followed by several minutes of footage and photographs of the real Malcolm. A coda features Nelson Mandela quoting Malcolm to a classroom of African children, returning us to the racial issues of the ‘90s with which the film began.
Lee and his crew did extensive research for this film, examining documents and letters by and about Malcolm, in addition to interviewing those who knew him. But like other biographical or historical films, Malcolm X changes, omits from, and adds to the historical record. Such alterations are understandable, given the difficulty in attempting to portray in just a few hours a life — especially a life containing the varied hues of Malcolm’s.
But it is important to note the film’s limitations.
For instance, the film shows a prison inmate urging Malcolm to embrace the NOI, but it was members of Malcolm’s own family who advised him to do so. Malcolm’s siblings only appear in the film as children in flashback sequences — their roles as adults in his life are not shown at all.