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Movies / On DVD / Malcolm X
Malcolm X

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Malcolm X (1992)

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Reviews Counted:44

Fresh:41

Rotten:3

Average Rating:7.5/10

Runtime: 3 hrs 21 mins

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: Spike Lee brings the life of African-American leader Malcolm X (an intense Denzel Washington in an Oscar-nominated performance) to the big screen in this sprawling, epic biographical drama. Born... Spike Lee brings the life of African-American leader Malcolm X (an intense Denzel Washington in an Oscar-nominated performance) to the big screen in this sprawling, epic biographical drama. Born Malcolm Little, son of a Nebraska preacher, on May 19, 1925, he became one of the most militant leaders and charismatic spokesmen of the black liberation movement before his assassination at the Audubon Ballroom in New York City on February 21, 1965. The film sweeps through his early life as a small-time hustler and thief with his friend Shorty (Lee), his conversion to Islam in jail, and his subsequent life as a controversial spiritual leader and husband of Betty Shabazz (Angela Bassett). Malcolm's tragic assassination is presented as a conspiracy of Nation of Islam leaders; the film shows how his philosophy has been realized in the lives of others who have been moved by his words. Filmed with great visual flair by Lee, the film is a work of entertainment as much as it is a historical artifact. Washington captures the spiritual conversion of the hero with a sincerity that is entirely as believable and ultimately moving as it was in the book that inspired the film, THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF MALCOLM X. [More]

Starring: Denzel Washington, Spike Lee, Al Freeman, Delroy Lindo

Starring: Denzel Washington, Spike Lee, Al Freeman, Delroy Lindo, Albert Hall, Theresa Randle, Kate Vernon, Angela Bassett, Brendan Kelly, David Patrick Kelly

Director: Spike Lee

Director: Spike Lee

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Jan 11, 1999

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for Malcolm X

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1 - 20 (sorted by fresh rating)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Lee's biography of the slain civil rights leader treats Malcolm, not as a political rallying point, but as a fully rounded individual whose life defies reduction to symbolic status.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
07/30/03
TV Guide's Movie Guide

No review available.

comment Comment
06/03/05
Andy Klein
Andy Klein
Los Angeles CityBeat

No review available.

comment Comment
12/18/03
Brian J. Arthurs
Brian J. Arthurs
Beach Reporter (Southern California)

Denzel Washington becomes Malcolm X. He delivers speeches the way we imagine Malcolm delivering them.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
01/01/00
Brian Webster
Brian Webster
Apollo Guide

No review available.

comment Comment
12/05/03
Carol Cling
Carol Cling
Las Vegas Review-Journal

Spike Lee is full of surprises, and certainly "Malcolm X" is his most surprising film yet.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
01/01/00
Chris Hicks
Chris Hicks
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

No review available.

comment Comment
03/20/03
Christopher Smith
Christopher Smith
Bangor Daily News (Maine)

Denzel Washington commands the screen and Spike Lee commands the medium, but the film wears out its welcome by the halfway mark.

comment Comment
07/25/02
Chuck Rudolph
Chuck Rudolph
Matinee Magazine

No review available.

comment Comment
12/08/06
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

No review available.

comment Comment
04/21/04
Daniel M. Kimmel
Daniel M. Kimmel
Worcester Telegram & Gazette

It plays surprisingly safe as a solidly crafted trawl through the didactic/hagiographic conventions of the mainstream biopic.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
02/09/06
Derek Adams
Derek Adams
Time Out

Lee has chosen a big subject and, with his quirky talent, has done it superb justice.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Desson Thomson
Desson Thomson
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Lamoclm X may seem conventional by Spike Lee's standards, but as a biopic of a controversial historical figure, it's superior to the nobility of spirit of a movie like Gandhi, for example, and Attenborough's high-mindedness.

Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | comment 1 Comment
12/25/06
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

Finds Lee’s tendencies towards gadflyish social outrage folded into the fabric of the typically reactionary biopic genre.

Full Review Source: Slant Magazine | comment Comment
02/08/05
Eric Henderson
Eric Henderson
Slant Magazine

richly layered

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
11/22/04
Eric Meyerson
Eric Meyerson
Filmcritic.com

Diligently and respectfully tracks both the highs and the lows in the spiritual journey of one of America's most important black leaders.

Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | comment Comment
08/21/02
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice

a thoughtful and insightful rendering that promises to educate generations about the real Malcolm X

Full Review Source: Old School Reviews | comment Comment
03/05/05
John A. Nesbit
John A. Nesbit
Old School Reviews

Malcolm X owes its success to a combination of things, not the least of which is Washington's performance.

Full Review Source: DVDTown.com | comment Comment
02/14/05
John J. Puccio
John J. Puccio
DVDTown.com

Visually and dramatically, Lee pulls out all the stops, but it's Washington's performance that really energizes the film, and he's an exhilarating presence throughout.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
09/23/08
Jon Fortgang
Jon Fortgang
Channel 4 Film

No review available.

comment Comment
10/22/03
Jurgen Fauth
Jurgen Fauth
About.com
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by fresh rating)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
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Latest News for Malcolm X

April 05, 2005: Spike & Denzel to Team Up for a Fourth Flick
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