Monsters and Men

First-time writer/director Reinaldo Marcus Green shapes three different Brooklyn-set stories reflecting injustice in the age of the Black Lives Matter movement. When police open fire on a seemingly unarmed African-American local resident, it affects different individuals in different ways. A youthful Latino puts his new job in jeopardy by posting evidence of the shooting online; an African-American NYPD officer (an excellent John David Washington, also seen in Spike Lee's BlacKkKlansman) believes in the force but is troubled by unfolding events; while a promising baseball player on the verge of signing a lucrative contract is driven by his conscience to join the burgeoning street protests. Overall, it's certainly not the most fiery or ferocious protest movie. Instead it takes time to gauge how fighting for your rights can sometimes be difficult depending on one's circumstances. Strong performances, and direction attuned to the paranoia of living on violent streets, contribute to a debut feature that's both thoughtful and provocative.