In my prior reviews, I’ve made it no secret how much I
prefer biopic movies that cover a short span of a real-life person’s life
rather than features that try to shove an entire life into one motion picture.
When you try to put too many major life events into one biopic movie, it has a
tendency to make things feel rushed and lessens the impact of moments that
should have real power to them. But this approach to biopic cinema can work
with the proper execution and Spike Lee’s Malcolm X not only has the proper
execution, it executes its expansive depiction of the life of Malcolm X so well
that this truly feels like one of the all-time great biopics.
