Washington never relaxes, even A paint by numbers programmer like “The Equalizer 2”. But in “Malcolm X,” every scene is a taut string. Whether it’s a numbers-chasing vagrant or a highly trained religious leader, it’s ready to explode at any moment. The tension of Malcolm’s existence, his righteous anger, and his compassion for his people are almost uncontrollable. He briefly has an electrifying dominance over his followers, but the weight of his responsibility and the dawning knowledge that his mentor Elijah Mohammed is an impostor traps him. He never gives up on his principles, even if the world turns on him. His long, lonely walk to the Audubon Ballroom, where he is to be killed, is particularly brutal because when it comes to film, all he does is meet the needs of his followers. Washington achieves this isolation with haunting silence.
Booze-making, macho stance and rising oratory come easily to Washington. We would follow him down a cliff. The silence and grief that Malcolm can’t express because he can only be a rock for his people – it gnaws at us. The aftermath of the assassination, the cries and wails in that nearly empty ballroom, the profound loss of a virtue-seeker in the midst of metamorphosis… completely destroy you.
Washington took us on an extraordinary journey. It’s one thing to read “The Autobiography of Malcolm X” (and it’s something you should do), but it’s a gift to see how one finds salvation not only in faith and education, but also in the blending of the two. Sometimes I think “Malcolm X” is the best of all American movies, and this wouldn’t have happened without Washington. I’ve seen gorgeous portraits of Malcolm (from Mario Van Peebles, Jason Delane, and Kingsley Ben-Adir), but the fullness of Washington’s performance is unmatched. Fourth quarter and overtime. All three hours of human experience. The biggest acting success I’ve ever seen.