Movie Title: The Trial of the Chicago 7
Starring: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Sacha Baron Cohen, Daniel Flaherty, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Michael Keaton, Frank Langella, John Carroll Lynch, Eddie Redmayne, Noah Robbins, Mark Rylance, Alex Sharp, Jeremy Strong, Ben Shenkman, J.C. MacKenzie, Kelvin Harrison Jr., John Doman, Wayne Duvall, Caitlin FitzGerald, Max Adler, Damian Young, Alice Kremelberg, Alan Metoskie
Review: The film is based on the infamous 1969 trial of seven defendants charged by the federal government with conspiracy and more, arising from the countercultural protests in Chicago at the 1968 Democratic National Convention. The trial transfixed the nation and sparked a conversation about mayhem intended to undermine the U.S. government.
The Trial of the Chicago 7, written and directed by Aaron Sorkin, is getting a lot of Oscar buzz coming into the 2021 awards season, and for good reason. This Netflix original film features an ensemble cast and an extremely well-written script. True to form for Sorkin, there are some distortions of the truth, but this film is based on real life events. By all means this film should not be taken as a textbook rendition of exactly what happened, but it's pretty close all things considered. The story revolves around seven men who are anti-Vietnam War protesters charged with conspiracy and crossing state lines with the intention of inciting riots at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. An eighth man, Bobby Seale (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II), gets caught up in the mess despite only being in Chicago for four hours. Seale refuses to be represented by William Kunstler (Mark Rylance) despite Kunstler and his co-counsel Leonard Weinglass (Ben Shenkman) representing all seven of the other defendants. Seale, who is a leader of the Black Panther party, just wants a fair trial and continues to speak out in court despite several warnings from Judge Hoffman (Frank Langella). I thought Abdul-Mateen II did a fantastic job in this role as sort of the mouthpiece for social injustice during the trial, even though he isn't necessarily a part of the seven. Sacha Baron Cohen is also great as Abbie Hoffman, the founding member of the Youth International Party. The character is very sarcastic in nature, much to the dismay of the judge who begrudgingly shares the same surname. Baron Cohen delivers on several monologues, and really does a wonderful job. I should also mention that Eddie Redmayne is also a focal voice in this film. His character becomes a lightning rod for some of the events that led to the seven standing trial, and there's a very powerful moment in the film that Redmayne delivers perfectly, albeit a highly dramatized variation from what actually occurred.
What is really interesting about this film is that it takes place in the late '60s, but a lot of the themes of this film really resonate with what is going on in the United States at the time of its release. Inciting riots, mayhem, and violence via verbal cues. Protesting social injustice. These things are hot topics right now, and no matter where you fall on these issues, we can all agree that these issues are very prominent right now. As a result, this film acts in many ways as a commentary on modern day society. As I said before, this film is really well-written, but there is a fair amount of wit and sarcasm, and the storylines pay off and tie up nicely. I think this is a really complete movie, and a movie that I very much enjoyed as a sum of its parts. Will it win Best Picture at the Oscars in 2021? Probably not. But it's definitely worth a watch, and sits near the top of 2021 "Best Movie" lists for good reason.
Fun Fact: Many years prior to its release, Steve Spielberg was attached to direct. He was planning on meeting with Heath Ledger to discuss the role of Tom Hayden (played by Eddie Redmayne). Ledger passed away the day before the meeting was scheduled. Spielberg also wanted Will Smith to play Bobby Seale (played by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II).