Queen & Slim is a film written by actress Lena Waithe and directed by Melina Matsoukas that follows a pair on their first Tinder date and the unexpectedly long journey they endure. On their way back from the date, the couple is pulled over by a police officer for swerving. Immediately noticing that the couple is black, the police officer begins to use unnecessary force against the pair. When the officer eventually pointed his head at Slim’s face and shot Queen in the leg, there was no option but to fight back out of self-defense. The pair ends up shooting and killing the officer, and are left with no option but to flee. The remainder of the film follows the couple as they travel across the country in an attempt to escape arrest. 

One aspect of the film that stood out to me was the brilliantly well-done cinematography. Throughout the entire film, the audience is shown beautiful views of the vast landscape that Queen and Slim travel. This is done primarily during transitions, which gives the suspenseful film moments with feelings of ease.

Another feature of the film that went above-and-beyond was the acting. Daniel Kaluuya played Slim and has been in various other highly-acclaimed films such as “Get Out” and “Black Panther.” Because of this, there was a lot of pressure on Kaluuya to live up to his high expectations. And, once again, Kaluuya demonstrated his talent to a degree that many of his actor peers cannot. He was able to make Slim easy to relate to whether it was during one of the calm moments of the film, or during one of the frantic chase scenes. Jodie Turner-Smith played Queen and isn’t as well-known as an actress. Although she has been in a couple of films, she is more recognized as a model. Regardless, her performance in Queen & Slim proved that she is a force to be reckoned with in the film industry. 

One disappointment I had with the film was how predictable the plot was. Although I was surprised that Queen and Slim were ultimately killed by the police at the end of the film, there were no other twists throughout the film that stunned me. Because of this, the overall experience wasn’t as entertaining as it could have been.

The ultimate message of the film was extremely important. The film was able to raise awareness of the police brutality that the African American community faces within America at a time when our country is so divided. Not only did they effectively portray the suffering that so many African Americans face every day, but they gave a voice to the other side of the argument as well. This dialogue is so important because it gives people an opinion that is understanding every point of view.