Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaParticipant is back in the thick of the Oscar race with two films, “Judas and the Black Messiah” and “Collective,” that seem to respond to the current political tumult.On paper, the movies appear somewhat removed from both the racial reckoning taking place around the world and the large-scale bureaucratic failures that greeted the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, both films grapple with themes that have given them an added resonance with critics, audiences and Academy voters.By telling the story of Fred Hampton, who was gunned down by the FBI and police in 1969, “Judas and the Black Messiah” explores the racist history of the justice system and reclaims a civil rights icon whose work.
Read more on variety.com