Overview
- Andre Gaines makes his first fiction feature by adapting Amiri Baraka’s play into a present-day, tonally bold film.
- The story expands beyond the subway to locations such as an apartment and a Harlem fundraiser, broadening the play’s once-contained scope.
- A mystical, meta layer features Stephen McKinley Henderson as a guiding figure named Dr. Amiri and includes on-screen nods to the 1966 film version.
- The principal cast includes André Holland, Kate Mara, Zazie Beetz, Stephen McKinley Henderson and Aldis Hodge, with Holland receiving standout praise.
- Reviewers cite ambition and strong performances but fault heavy-handed choices, messy logic and a limited engagement with Black women’s perspectives, noting the film assumes familiarity with the source material.