As one of the preliminary judges for the 2020 Denton Black Film Festival, I had the privilege of attending the virtual premiere of Black Box. It’s Amazon Prime’s newest thriller in a series of four separate tales produced by Blumhouse Productions. This is the same company that produced Get Out, BlacKkKlansman, and Us. Usually, a production company provides the technical crew and secures the materials, lots or locations, and funding needed to create the tangible film. They also market the project after it’s made and source venues for screening.
The history of medicine is littered with horrifying experiments and this film pushes trial and error through a surreal, tech savvy filter.
Emmanuel Osei-Kuffour (Ghanaian) directed the film and also write the script with Stephen Herman (African American) who conceived the story. Black Box stars silver screen icon Phylicia Rashad as Dr. Lillian, a neuroscientist with an experimental new device and procedure. Dr. Lillian has other secrets and uses her genius for all the wrong reasons. I won’t give away the story, but my favorite character is Dr. Gary, played by Tosin Morohunfola. He’s another neurologist at the hospital, with a generous touch and trustworthiness that almost seems suspicious in the world of medicine. But, I like characters with empathy and intuition in a thriller because you can experience the film through their perspective. The history of medicine is littered with horrifying experiments and this film pushes trial and error through a surreal, tech savvy filter. In contrast, the special effects were created with light, sound, and physicality instead of CGI. If you studied theater or science, these elements might appeal to you.
This is a solid plot with climactic scenes that play and replay like a leitmotif until you see the truth fully unveiled at the end. If you like Black Mirror, you will enjoy this series. Please don’t believe the snarky, snide journalists of major media outlets who reviewed this film and gave away the entire plot! The series’ spotlight on ethnic creators with strong writing and directing skills is an excellent way to get introduced to new talent. Next, I’m going to check out Osei-Kuffour’s Born With It from 2015.
Have a Spooky Day
-Rae Pleasant
