‘The Blackening Review: A ‘Whos Blackest? Board Game Skewers A Cabinful Of Horror Movie Cliches
© Glen Wilson/Lionsgate/Lionsgate/TNS Left to right Antoinette Robertson as Lisa, Grace Byers as Alison, Jermaine Fowler as Clifton and Dewayne Perkins as Dewayne in The Blackening.Comedy has become the new variety show in recent years. The short film format now serves as an orpheum circuit where growing ideas and diverse talent can be translated into feature films or television series.
One last encouraging example of how and why this works? "Dark". It's a comedy with lots of laughs. You know how often I write this about comedy? Often not enough.
Chicago comedy group 3Peat's 2018 started short - fast, hilarious, razor sharp. Well, that's a movie, and while there's a break in director Tim Story's full expansion, that's always a treat. Lots of good jokes, subtle and broad and in-between, from the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air to every pitch to the oldest jokes in the book.
Eight colleagues meet in a cabin in the woods and plan a weekend full of relaxation, gossip, hallucinogens, fun and games, because nothing can go wrong with the concept. But there is a crossbow-wielding assassin on foot with free access to both the forest and the cottage, including the playroom.
In this play, an evil game called Blackout will be the means to these people's salvation or downfall. In the game itself, an electronically speaking killer asks questions about black culture. One wrong answer, someone dies.
The screenplay, written by 3Peat collaborator Dewayne Perkins and co-writer Tracy Oliver, expands the narrative while retaining the short film's brilliance and wit. There can be many; The story's director and writers called for the horrors to be both funny and real, and for the story to be offensive to the diverse cast. The best scream movies made this mix look easy. It is not.
To Story's credit, "Blackout" has the wit (and wit) to remember that this thing needs to work comedically or just keep going. Everyone agrees in this series, with great twists from Antoinette Robertson as Lisa; Grace Byers as Alison; Co-writer and co-star Perkins as Dewayne... honestly, it's all hilarious and snappy dialogue as if nothing happened. (Example line when the white guard arrives at just the right time: "I've never been so glad to see a white savior!")
Many of the jokes encourage violence, crossplay, or just plain violence; Thankfully, many others come from the realm of hit-and-run, off-the-cuff, seemingly improvised quirks, conversations and lines that hit the mark and keep going. It's a slasher historical film, and it works because old friends fight (and, contrary to slasher logic, fall apart) while clashing with their new mutual enemy.
This is not an unusual film. "Blackout" isn't social satire on the resonance level of Jordan Peele's "Get Out" or "No." But it's very smart at best when it comes to the infinitely fertile subject of being black in America and always on the lookout for the latest white insult. There's also an anecdote from O'Reilly Auto Parts that when you see "Blackout" in a crowd, you're reminded of the satisfying sound of several hundred people throwing up their guts at the same time.
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"BLACK"
3 stars (out of 4)
MPA Rating: R (for strong language, violence, and drug use)
Duration: 1h36
How to watch: Friday at the movies
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