BlacKkKlansman Review: 8 Ups & 1 Down

4. It Avoids Making The KKK Cartoonish Villains

It would've been so easy for Spike Lee, or really any director making this movie, to paint the KKK's members as rootin' tootin', dumb rednecks, because it'd be an easy way to give us all a laugh at their expense, right?

Admirably, Lee resists what must've been a huge urge, instead painting the Klan members as well-drawn, believable human beings. After all, racists don't usually wear "I'm racist!" stickers, and otherwise productive members of society can harbour some of the most repugnant views of all.

While there are some idiots among them, sure, here many of the focal members seem like regular human beings for the most part, no matter their trash values.

One telling scene sees Felix and his wife in bed, sharing what seems to be a tender moment as they fantasise about killing black people: it's at once intensely disturbing, hilarious and probably more authentic than anyone wants to admit.

By refusing to paint the KKK as cartoon characters, the movie feels more grounded, and also more comparable to the present day, where racists so often come in the form of MAGA hat-wearing, middle-class Trump voters rather than a lynch mob.