A short synopsis of Spike Lee's Da 5 Bloods sets up a war story with a distinct narrative told from a perspective that's rarely been shared on film. Four black Army veterans (Delroy Lindo, Clarke Peters, Norm Lewis, Isiah Whitlock Jr.) who dubbed themselves "The Bloods" return to Vietnam in the present day to retrieve the remains of their beloved fallen squad leader (Chadwick Boseman) and a large stash of gold they buried in a combat zone. That simple premise seems to offer up a litany of excellent opportunities to examine a wide variety of subjects including the specific set of hardships that faced black soldiers faced when they returned to the United States, the eternal bond between soldiers and having the long dormant ghosts of their past be reawakened upon their return to Vietnamese soil all within the framework of an old school adventure tale. Despite early indications to the contrary, this isn't the film Da 5 Bloods ends up being.
At the start, Da 5 Bloods seems to be on the cusp of telling a complex, haunting and deeply poignant story. These four men spend their early scenes reconnecting in the present day by having conversations that reflect on the hellish environment of the battlefields they fought on and allude to everything from how a lot of white men that were their age were able to get out of going to Vietnam,which unsurprisingly includes a home run of a dig at Donald Trump, to the continued disenfranchisement they faced upon returning home. These pivotal establishing moments also introduce powerful arcs surrounding Lindo's character's long battle with PTSD and Peters' character discovery that he's fathered a daughter (Sandy Hurong Pham) with a former prostitute (Le Y Lan) he was close with during his service time. It's simply excellent storytelling that touches on a lot of interest, powerful subjects that haven't been explored in most of the past films about Vietnam and lays down the groundwork for something that feels like it's going to become really special.
Then the hunt for the lost gold comes into play and Da 5 Bloods morphs into something radically different. While this treasure hunt makes for quality entertainment that features some terrific moments of suspense, it ends up obscuring and undermining the deeper themes Lee hints at exploring in depth in the earlier parts of the film. This 90 minute sidequest sees the introduction of several supporting characters including Lindo's character's concerned son (Jonathan Majors), a trio of 30-somethings (Melanie Thierry, Paul Walter Hauser, Jasper Paakonen) who belong to an organization that clears landmines in former warzones and a local militia that's also hellbent on finding the gold that prevents further development of the Bloods both on an individual and group level as well as some heavy-handed, painfully contrived moments that take away from the raw realism that was on display in the early stages.
There isn't even the presence of some unexpected betrayal or a greed-driven dissolving of bonds along the way to make up for some of the depth that was lost by approaching this treasure hunt with full blown tunnel vision, it's pretty much just good guys vs. bad guys fighting over a huge gold stash in the Vietnamese jungle that ends with an Expendables-esque bloody standoff. Spending this much time on an engaging yet ultimately hollow treasure hunt just feels like an odd miscalculation by Lee that significantly dulls the potency of his intention to a shine a light on the black soldiers whose presence and plight has been minimized in both the history books and cinematic takes on said history.
Da 5 Bloods is without question the most conflicted I've felt about one of Lee's films. It's a well-acted, uniquely compelling film that also happens to be scattershot and devoid of a clear message. It's a good start to unearthing a historical viewpoint that's been largely glossed over and a missed opportunity to explore it further. It's a showcase of the limitless ambition that makes Lee such a fascinating filmmaker and a damning example of the trouble he can have with forming his sweeping vision into a focused, cohesive product. While it's far too flawed for me to consider it a great film, it's definitely one that I'll have a hard time forgetting.
At the start, Da 5 Bloods seems to be on the cusp of telling a complex, haunting and deeply poignant story. These four men spend their early scenes reconnecting in the present day by having conversations that reflect on the hellish environment of the battlefields they fought on and allude to everything from how a lot of white men that were their age were able to get out of going to Vietnam,which unsurprisingly includes a home run of a dig at Donald Trump, to the continued disenfranchisement they faced upon returning home. These pivotal establishing moments also introduce powerful arcs surrounding Lindo's character's long battle with PTSD and Peters' character discovery that he's fathered a daughter (Sandy Hurong Pham) with a former prostitute (Le Y Lan) he was close with during his service time. It's simply excellent storytelling that touches on a lot of interest, powerful subjects that haven't been explored in most of the past films about Vietnam and lays down the groundwork for something that feels like it's going to become really special.
Then the hunt for the lost gold comes into play and Da 5 Bloods morphs into something radically different. While this treasure hunt makes for quality entertainment that features some terrific moments of suspense, it ends up obscuring and undermining the deeper themes Lee hints at exploring in depth in the earlier parts of the film. This 90 minute sidequest sees the introduction of several supporting characters including Lindo's character's concerned son (Jonathan Majors), a trio of 30-somethings (Melanie Thierry, Paul Walter Hauser, Jasper Paakonen) who belong to an organization that clears landmines in former warzones and a local militia that's also hellbent on finding the gold that prevents further development of the Bloods both on an individual and group level as well as some heavy-handed, painfully contrived moments that take away from the raw realism that was on display in the early stages.
There isn't even the presence of some unexpected betrayal or a greed-driven dissolving of bonds along the way to make up for some of the depth that was lost by approaching this treasure hunt with full blown tunnel vision, it's pretty much just good guys vs. bad guys fighting over a huge gold stash in the Vietnamese jungle that ends with an Expendables-esque bloody standoff. Spending this much time on an engaging yet ultimately hollow treasure hunt just feels like an odd miscalculation by Lee that significantly dulls the potency of his intention to a shine a light on the black soldiers whose presence and plight has been minimized in both the history books and cinematic takes on said history.
Da 5 Bloods is without question the most conflicted I've felt about one of Lee's films. It's a well-acted, uniquely compelling film that also happens to be scattershot and devoid of a clear message. It's a good start to unearthing a historical viewpoint that's been largely glossed over and a missed opportunity to explore it further. It's a showcase of the limitless ambition that makes Lee such a fascinating filmmaker and a damning example of the trouble he can have with forming his sweeping vision into a focused, cohesive product. While it's far too flawed for me to consider it a great film, it's definitely one that I'll have a hard time forgetting.
Grade: B
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