Blindspotting

One of the most powerful films that I saw at Sundance this year was Blindspotting.  It profoundly affected me and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it so I had to see it again now that it is in wide release.  In an Oakland that is being overrun by hipsters, Collin (Daveed Diggs) is spending the last three days of his year-long probation trying to stay out of trouble.  His hot tempered and impulsive best friend Miles (Rafael Casal), with whom he now has an uneasy relationship, is not making things easy for him by constantly getting into trouble for which Collin is usually blamed (including the incident that landed Collin in prison in the first place).  Collin is tormented after witnessing a white cop shoot and kill a black man running away.  Miles is incensed when a black man accuses him of cultural appropriation. Both characters have intense moments of poignancy.  When I watched this film the first time, my sympathies were all with Collin, especially in a scene where he is followed by a police car while walking home with Miles' gun (that scene really affected me during both screenings) and in a scene with an incredibly powerful monologue as Collin confronts the police officer involved in the shooting.  However, this time I also felt some sympathy for Miles because his whole identity is also called into question by the gentrification of his neighborhood.  I understand now that both characters suffer from "blindspotting," or having people behave towards them according to preconceived stereotypes instead of judging them for who they are.  Both Driggs and Casal, who also wrote the screenplay, give incredible performances that pulled me into their world.  I highly recommend this film for its powerful message abut white privilege, racism, and racial profiling.  It is brilliant!