Kathryn Bigelow's Detroit is the point where Bigelow's artistic reach exceeds her narrative grasp. In her previous films with screenwriter Mark Boal, Bigelow crafted her films around a central figure. In Detroit, she and Mr. Boal attempt to provide a polyphonic portrait of the Detroit riots of 1967, centering on murders by police officers at the Algiers Motel. Bigelow contrasts warm color tones of home life (browns and yellows) and the local music scene with cold tones (mostly sickly green) of the police's racist culture. What doesn't jell is characterization. Bigelow seems to work best in mythic genre pieces centered around a flawed protagonist. As with Strange Days, a multi-perspective narrative seems beyond her ken. (1/14/18)
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