Fans of a 2020 war drama are thrilled as the critically acclaimed movie comes onto Netflix. Da 5 Bloods is an American film directed, produced, and co-written by Spike Lee.
The film’s plot follows a group of four ageing Vietnam War veterans who return to the country in search of the remains of their fallen squad leader, as well as the treasure they buried while serving there. It stars Delroy Lindo, Jonathan Majors, Clarke Peters, Norm Lewis, Isiah Whitlock Jr., and Chadwick Boseman in his last movie released during his lifetime. It received acclaim from critics, who praised the direction, themes, and the performances of Lindo, Peters and Boseman, with many considering it among Lee’s best works.
The film received numerous accolades, including nominations for the Academy Award for Best Original Score and Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture, and was named by the National Board of Review as the Best Film of 2020.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 92% with an average rating of eight out of 10. The site’s critical consensus reads: “Fierce energy and ambition course through Da 5 Bloods, coming together to fuel one of Spike Lee’s most urgent and impactful films.” On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 82%, indicating “universal acclaim”.
Richard Brody of The New Yorker wrote that the film “runs two hours and thirty-four minutes, but it’s not a second too long. On the contrary, it feels compressed, bustling, and frenzied with its intellectual and dramatic energy.”
David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter called the film “as timely as today’s news” and “a gift” , adding that “there’s no other director that could have made it”.
He wrote: “Lee deftly steers it all full circle in a series of brief wrap-up scenes that are both fancifully tidy and deadly serious, acknowledging the Black Lives Matter movement in a way that allows this sprawling, unwieldy, frequently brilliant film to close on a profoundly affecting note of hope and catharsis.”
Richard Roeper of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film four out of four, saying: “The picture, the script and director Lee all deserve nomination consideration, as does the lush and booming score by Lee’s longtime collaborator Terence Blanchard. Whitlock, Lewis, Peters and Boseman deserve supporting actor conversation, while Delroy Lindo should be an instant contender for best actor”.