Small Axe: Mangrove

Name: Small Axe: Mangrove
Genre: Drama
Released: November 20, 2020
Duration: 124 min
Rating: 90
Cast: Gary Beadle, Gershwyn Eustache Jnr, Jay Simpson, Jodhi May, Joshua Viner

2020

METASCORE

Universal acclaim based on 27 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 47 Ratings

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7.5

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7.5	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 47 Ratings

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Movie Details & Credits

Amazon Prime Video | Release Date (Streaming): November 20, 2020 | Not Rated

Starring: Gary Beadle, Gershwyn Eustache Jnr, Jay Simpson, Jodhi May, Joshua Viner, Letitia Wright, Malachi Kirby, Rochenda Sandall, Sam Spruell, Shaun Parkes

Summary: Mangrove tells the story of a restaurant and its owner in London’s Notting Hill; repeated police harassment leads to a protest march where nine arrests are made and result in a show trial at the Old Bailey in 1971, making legal history.

Director: Steve McQueen

Genre(s): Drama

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 124 min

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

Rogan Graham

Feb 14, 2022

Mangrove is a necessary and exhilarating illustration of the staying power of Black Britons. Read full review

100

Empire Jimi Famurewa

Nov 9, 2020

Impassioned, sensitively acted and supersized in scope, Steve McQueen’s tribute to the Mangrove Nine provides a pulsating Black British history lesson — and kicks off his Small Axe anthology with an urgent bang. Read full review

Richard Lawson

Nov 18, 2020

Mangrove is not a lecture, or a polemic. There’s a gracefulness to McQueen’s technique that gives the film a poetic lilt; even when the worst things are happening, or the biggest speeches are being made in court, McQueen manages to avoid the starchy stuff of so many political and legal dramas. Read full review

Lorry Kikta

Sep 25, 2020

The electrifying performances, superb cinematography, and timeless subject matter make it a shoo-in for awards all over the place. Considering that it is a smaller piece of a more prominent statement makes it all the more interesting. Read full review

A.O. Scott

Nov 19, 2020

A history lesson doesn’t have to be a lecture, and at its best, Mangrove, with its clear and painful implications for the present, conveys the sense of a world in motion, as the possibility of something new comes into being. Read full review

RogerEbert.com Odie Henderson

Sep 25, 2020

Mangrove becomes a full-on courtroom drama. The standard, expected beats and tropes are hit, but what happens within those elements makes the film so powerful and so rewarding. The lead actors also step up their game here, with each getting juicy dramatic moments that linger long after the credits roll. Read full review

John Anderson

Nov 19, 2020

It’s unclear what if anything Mr. McQueen or his co-writer, Alastair Siddons, lifted from judicial transcripts, but the inherent boundaries of a courtroom help give more shape and momentum to the storytelling. The setting also allows the characters to stop telling each other things they’d never say. Read full review

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User Reviews

katezoe

Feb 13, 2021

Small Axe: Mangrove shows us the neighborhood of Notting Hill, London in 1968 the precursor to Ferguson, Missouri in 2014. A brilliant film on systemic racism and police brutality on what has become Black Lives Matter.

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theredsky

Dec 26, 2020

I haven’t watched any Steve McQueen films until now and I had to say that I was blown away. This film was incredibly on a storytelling perspective. McQueen does an excellent job at making the audience feel for his characters and understand the story behind them and the events surrounding theI haven’t watched any Steve McQueen films until now and I had to say that I was blown away. This film was incredibly on a storytelling perspective. McQueen does an excellent job at making the audience feel for his characters and understand the story behind them and the events surrounding the story. Each character, who is a real person by the way, is interesting and this is mostly due to the performances and writing. Letitia Wright’s performance is easily one of my favorite of the year and I really hope that she gets recognition for it. Every other performance here is great to. There is not one bad performance in this film. Everyone does an outstanding job and it seems like this film will get that recognition for its performances. The writing is top notch. I can tell from his writing that McQueen is interested in telling this story and the way he writes his dialogue is perfect. His direction is also very well done too. This man knows what he is doing. The story follows 9 African American’s put on trial for a protest that was squashed by the police and made to look like a riot. A lot of this film is in court and usually, movies that primarily focus on court cases don’t do a lot for me but this was special. I was always engaged in these scenes. We get to see a different side of the police around the world, not just in America and it’s infuriating to see how grossly the police were in this scenario. My main issue with the film was that sometimes, the cinematography felt a little stale. Most of my issues are with the beginning of the film in fact. It’s just not as interesting as the rest of the film. I’m not saying that the first part was boring but I was way more investing in everything after the beginning of the film. This a great film for anyone to check out if they want a compelling story or another knock out of the park from Steve McQueen.… Expand

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CarlElmore

Nov 24, 2022

Very thought provoking film with some amazing direction by Steve McQueen and lead performance.

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JLuis_001

May 8, 2021

Although he manipulates certain aspects to overload the drama, Steve McQueen shows his nimble hand in this solid and content courtroom drama.

The only thing that surprised me is that despite the length, there are many one-dimensional characters, especially policemen who are only portrayedAlthough he manipulates certain aspects to overload the drama, Steve McQueen shows his nimble hand in this solid and content courtroom drama.

The only thing that surprised me is that despite the length, there are many one-dimensional characters, especially policemen who are only portrayed as simple villains.
Not that we need a lot of depth on fundamentally racist characters, but at one point in the repeated raids, these look like simple cartoonish characters.

Beyond that point, McQueen delivers a little movie that makes a lot more noise than the bombastic The Trial of the Chicago 7.
Ironically, one is nominated for the Academy Awards, and this is just one piece from a television anthology.… Expand

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