Though Flawed, "Sleight" Manages to Maintain an Entertaining Mystique Throughout

   Folks, we're one week away from the summer movie season. That's right, all of those huge blockbusters that permeate the summer movie scene are biting at the heels. Before venturing into the mass hysteria that these bloated-budget spectacles offer, I found it quite fortuitous to see that opening this week was a smaller film, made by a fairly new-ish director, and it turns out that it was just the palate-cleanser I needed before bracing for the mania to come. I'm talking about J.D. Dillard's Sleight, a slick drama with a small, contained story that follows predictable story tropes, but ultimately remained fairly fresh and entertaining...despite it's many shortcomings. It's one of those movies that you think is one thing, then it ends up being something completely different by the end, an aspect I ultimately enjoyed.

   The story follows Bo (Jacob Latimore), a young street magician who is left to care for his little sister after the sudden passing of their parents. Passing up a college scholarship to tend to his new responsibilities, Bo falls into the stereotypical plot point for every young, intelligent black male in these types of situations: he turns to selling drugs and participating in illegal activities in order to pay the bills. It's a trope that happens all too often, (last year's Dope is an example of that. Moonlight touches on this a bit as well), and for whatever reason, it remains a relevant plot devise, and it serves this story well. When Bo gets in too deep with his handler Angelo, his sister is kidnapped and he is forced to use his magic and brilliant mind to save her. It's a fairly predictable story, but not without its fair share of charm, heart, and emotional tension.

   I think Sleight wanted to be more than it ends up being. I say that because there's a theme presented that magic and sacrifice go hand in hand, and there are moments where Dillard is trying to walk that balance, but only ends up beating you over the head with it. I credit the great performances in the film as the catalyst that keeps this movie entertaining. Latimore carries the role of Bo well. There's a mystique about Bo's abilities that is quickly revealed, and Latimore does a great job at keeping the character grounded. The other great stand-out performance was from Dulé Hill who plays Angelo, Bo's "boss," a gangster that could have easily been over-the-top and cliche, but Hill maintains his composure and brings a level of realism to Angelo. At the beginning of the film I remember thinking "man, this has got to be the nicest drug lord I have ever seen in a movie." It's true, Hill plays Angelo like a regular guy...that is until people do him dirty. Then we see the dark side come out.

   The marketing for this movie has it slated as "Chronicle meets Iron Man" and I would strongly disagree. There's more than meets the eye with Bo and his magic, that's for sure, and I can see how you can draw connections to Chronicle or Iron Man, but ultimately Sleight is its own thing. It's not a perfect movie, there were some continuity issues and some lack-luster moments during the second act, but overall I really enjoyed what this movie was trying to do. I appreciated its small story, its great acting, and it's predictable yet interesting and mystical story, grounded in an all-too-relevant reality. I definitely recommend checking it out. It's not what you would expect from watching its trailers. I had a completely different idea of what this movie was going to be having seen the trailer before hand, but it was not that at all. But, in light of what is to come in the coming months, Sleight is a fantastic calm before the spectacular storm that is the summer movie season.