Fact-based drama set during the 1967 Detroit riots in which a group of rogue police officers respond to a complaint with retribution rather than justice on their minds.Fact-based drama set during the 1967 Detroit riots in which a group of rogue police officers respond to a complaint with retribution rather than justice on their minds.Fact-based drama set during the 1967 Detroit riots in which a group of rogue police officers respond to a complaint with retribution rather than justice on their minds.
- Awards
- 4 wins & 21 nominations
Joshua Olumide
- Dave
- (as Tokunbo Joshua Olumide)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaUsing a style she first adopted with The Hurt Locker (2008), director Kathryn Bigelow deployed three or four cameras at a time, keeping them in constant motion around the actors. Bigelow preferred to light the entire set to give the performers more flexibility to move around. She didn't block a scene for the camera by plotting out a series of close-ups and wide shots, instead filming everything in a few takes to keep the emotions as raw as possible. "After two or three takes, I have it," she said.
- GoofsThe telephones in the hotel rooms and elsewhere have handsets with modular connectors and flexible cords. Phones like that weren't available nationwide until the 1970s, but they were available in Detroit in 1961.
- Crazy creditsBefore end credits: "The facts around the murders at the Algiers Motel on July 25th, 1967 were never conclusively established in a criminal proceeding. As a result, portions of this film were constructed and dramatized based on the recollections of the participants and available documents."
- Soundtracks(I Know) I'm Losing You
Written by Cornelius Grant, Eddie Holland (as Edward Holland Jr.) and Norman Whitfield
Performed by The Temptations
Courtesy of Motown Records
Under license from Universal Music Enteprises
Featured review
Kathryn Bigelow is known for her documentary-style camera-work and the creation of an intense atmosphere. This can be seen, either from the early work like Near Dark and Point Break, or from her more recent films such as The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty. In one word, she is a good director for thrillers.
But Detroit is not a pure thriller. It is more like a period drama. On the one hand, the interrogation in the motel is the thriller part of the film, and without any doubt, it is brilliant. The audience keep wondering what would happen next. On the other hand, the film as a whole is mediocre in story-telling and character development. The setup for the interrogation is unnecessarily too long. Also, the courtroom process after the interrogation is too short. For more than once, Bigelow just simply displays lots of texts on the screen to make up for her unbalanced story-telling. John Boyega's character could have been the most impressive because he is the most struggling one in conscience. Yet it turns out to be untrue due to the limited time and space given to the character.
Overall speaking, Detroit could have been a thought-provoking classic, but it lacks depth in the end. There is no deeper discussion on the cause of the injustice or the impact it is could bring to real life. One real classic period drama is Spielberg's Schindler's List. In this aspect, Bigelow is still one step away from being a great director.
One more thing, Will Poulter deserves a nomination for Oscar best supporting actor, whose performance is the key to the success of the thriller part.
But Detroit is not a pure thriller. It is more like a period drama. On the one hand, the interrogation in the motel is the thriller part of the film, and without any doubt, it is brilliant. The audience keep wondering what would happen next. On the other hand, the film as a whole is mediocre in story-telling and character development. The setup for the interrogation is unnecessarily too long. Also, the courtroom process after the interrogation is too short. For more than once, Bigelow just simply displays lots of texts on the screen to make up for her unbalanced story-telling. John Boyega's character could have been the most impressive because he is the most struggling one in conscience. Yet it turns out to be untrue due to the limited time and space given to the character.
Overall speaking, Detroit could have been a thought-provoking classic, but it lacks depth in the end. There is no deeper discussion on the cause of the injustice or the impact it is could bring to real life. One real classic period drama is Spielberg's Schindler's List. In this aspect, Bigelow is still one step away from being a great director.
One more thing, Will Poulter deserves a nomination for Oscar best supporting actor, whose performance is the key to the success of the thriller part.
- TheBigSick
- Aug 5, 2017
- Permalink
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official sites
- Language
- Also known as
- Детройт
- Filming locations
- Detroit, Michigan, USA(Detroit Police Station 10th Precinct)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $34,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $16,790,139
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $350,190
- Jul 30, 2017
- Gross worldwide
- $23,355,100
- Runtime2 hours 23 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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