SMALL AXE: MANGROVE

UK, 2020, 127 minutes, Colour.

Shaun Parkes, Letitia Wright, Nathanial Martello-White, Rochenda Sandor, Jack Lowdon, Adam Godley, Samuel West, Sam Spruel.

Directed by Steve McQueen.

Small Axe is a series of five films made for television, co-written and directed by Steve McQueen (director of many short films for 15 years then moving into features with Hunger, Shame, 12 years a Slave, Widows). Each of the films in Small Axe takes up themes of West Indians in the UK ranging from police, education, music…

Mangrove is the first and sets the tone. It is also the longest.

The year is 1968, a new generation of West Indians starting to grow up in London, with groupings in various parts of the city like Notting Hill. There is prejudice against the migrants, black migrants. And this is particularly the case with many of the London police, illustrated very strongly here.

At the centre is a dignified middle-aged man, Frank, played by Shaun Parkes, who opens a restaurant in Notting Hill, the Mangrove, serving specifically spicy West Indian food and offering a centre for West Indians to gather. The film shows the police and their bigotry, especially in the person of PC Pulley (Sam Spruell) who leads a number of raids attacking the Mangrove, false accusations about prostitution and drugs, with a great deal of smashing and destruction.

The film also shows a range of characters in Notting Hill, the young woman influenced by the Black Panther movement in the US, wanting protest. Some are in favour, some prefer legal action. They are strong characters and their convictions are presented in the context of their lives in London.

Ultimately, there is a protest and the police arrest a number of those participating, including Frank, and charge them with affray. They meet with lawyers, some wary about the defendants defending themselves but that is the decision made. There is also a rather cheeky young lawyer played by Jack Lowdon who represents the defendants as they defend themselves. Adam Godley is the rather supercilious judge. Samuel West is the rather superior prosecutor.

The courtroom sequences are very strong, the judge taking severe stances, refusing applications by the defendants, discriminating in his treatment of those in court, in the Old Bailey. There are scenes where Frank is being persuaded to plead guilty and have a lesser sentence – but persuaded not, then some strong scenes of the defendants defending themselves and a powerful speech by the final speaker.

While the jury finds all the defendants not guilty, information given later is attacks from the police continued with the Mangrove until 1993 and that it continued to be raided many times.

Here is a film of 2020 which is still relevant to race issues.

1. The first in the series of Small Axe, setting the tone? UK, West Indies migrants, settlement, racism?
2. The work of Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave, Hunger, the range of stories for Small Axe?
3. 1968, the status of West Indians, Enoch Powell political comment? Race prejudice and ordinary citizens? Protest, the courts? The later riots, Brixton, the 21^st-century?
4. The Notting Hill setting, the suburban streets, the shops? The Mangrove restaurant? Police precincts? Protests? The law courts, the court itself, the rooms, prisoner areas? The musical score?
5. Frank Critchlow and his story, West Indian background, his age, friends, the idea for the restaurant, taking over the Mangrove, setting it up, a centre for the West Indians in Notting Hill, a centre for joy and support?
6. The police, PC Pulley, in the car, his associates, expressions of bigotry, violence, racism? At headquarters, the jokes about racing violence? The attacks on the Mangrove, the intrusion, bashing, smashing? The repetition?
7. The locals in Notting Hill, Barbara, her hair, her husband, life at home, the child, the arguments, demonstrations and convictions?
8. Television, the interview with the West Indian, his plea, issues?
9. Althea, the background of the Black Panthers, the meetings, her tough stances, the rallies? Her leadership? The pregnancy?
10. The variety of other characters, at the Mangrove, friends of Frank? Pros and cons, the idea of protest, the atmosphere of the 1960s? The agreement? Frank going to the march? The police observing, going into action? The charges? Assault and affray?
11. The lawyers, discussions, the older lawyers and their recommendations, Ian McDonald, his age, the touch of freshness? The various meetings, discussions, plans? Being cheeky? The issue of whether the defendants should defend themselves?
12. In court, the formalities, British justice, the Old Bailey and its atmosphere? The judge and his attitudes? Treatment of the case, treatment of the defendants, of the public, his decisions, harsh? The interjections? Excluding visitors? The exhibition of police brutality towards the defendants, isolating them?
13. The prosecutor, his attitude, the range of questions, the police, lies and deception? His supercilious manner? The judge listening, intervening?
14. The range of speeches, the defendants, their cross-examining witnesses, the police? The exposure of Pulley?
15. Frank, observing, the issue of his pleading guilty or not? Althea and her strong speech?
16. The final, the defence speech, powerful, emotional, the effect?
17. The role of the jury, objections to the jury, Black members of the jury, men and women, their faces as they listen to the evidence? The return, the verdicts?
18. The achievement of the time, Frank continuing with the Mangrove to the 1990s, yet the continued raids? The importance of this kind of film in the 2020s?