TV Review - Beats (2019)

Chris Robinson is an African-American filmmaker who made his career on directing music videos. He's mainly done R&B and Hip Hop videos for over 20 years. His résumé makes him appropriate to make this film about an aspiring musician who makes hip hop music and the talent manager who recruits him. There have been several films about people up-and-coming in the hip hop industry or young black men trying to survive the ghetto or inner-city. This film though has a different approach, as well as a fresh take that I haven't normally seen in films. This isn't a theatrical film though. It's one for television, and when it comes to television, this fresh take has been explored on the small screen. Specifically, it's been explored on FOX's Empire and OWN's David Makes Man. That fresh take is a continuation of an idea and theme we've seen in Spike Lee's Chi-Raq (2015). That Spike Lee joint was set in Chicago and its title suggested that inner-city life there was comparable to the war zone that was Iraq. It's only been 40 years or so that PTSD has been a diagnosis for people in war zones. If inner-city violence is comparable to war zones, then people in those areas would also suffer from PTSD. This film like we've seen in Empire and David Makes Man addresses a young black person in Chicago suffering from PTSD.

Khalil Everage (The Chi and Cobra Kai) stars as August Monroe, a high school student living in the south side of Chicago in a neighborhood known as Roseland. He lives with his single mother. He's become an introvert and agoraphobic, as a result of his PTSD. He's probably a junior in high school, but when he was a sophomore or during the previous year, he witnessed a very traumatic event, which makes him afraid to go outside. He has become a shut-in. August's dad was former military and it's possible that his father had PTSD as well, but his father is no longer in the picture, which probably contributes to August's panic attacks. To help him cope, he creates music. In his bedroom, he has an electronic keyboard and other devices to make tracks that people would enjoy.

Anthony Anderson (Black-ish and Law & Order) co-stars as Romelo Reese, a security guard at the school that August used to attend. Romelo is also the estranged husband of the school's principal. However, the school is having funding issues and Romelo is in danger of losing his job. The funding issues are due to the lack of attendance to the school. The principal tells Romelo that he needs to help bring attendance back up if he wants to keep his job. Therefore, Romelo is told to go out and start getting students to come back to school. Romelo visits a lot of homes and we get a clue as to why students aren't showing up.

When Romelo visits August's house, he doesn't see why August is skipping school. Romelo does notice that August is creating great music tracks. It's then revealed that Romelo used to be a music producer before he became a security guard. He used to discover and foster talent, particularly hip hop artists. It's a question as to why Romelo isn't still doing it, but that question is answered in the end. In the meantime, Romelo thinks he can become a music producer again and use August to do so. He has to hustle in order to make it happen. At the same time, he has to convince August to come out of his shell and try to overcome his PTSD, two things which aren't easy.

Uzo Aduba (Orange is the New Black) also co-stars as Carla Monroe, the mother to August. She is very protective of her son. Given the trauma that he experienced, she wants to do everything she can to prevent him from experiencing that kind of trauma again. The reason August is a shut-in is due to his mother being so stubborn about him not going out and hanging out in the streets.

Yet, the film, written by Miles Orion Feldsott, really concentrates on the relationship between August and Romelo. Romelo is a surrogate father and the push that August needs to take steps toward addressing his mental health issues. Robinson's direction also goes a long way to helping us understand what August's mental health issues are and trying to convey what it feels like for him. I also think Everage being cast in the role is also important, given Everage's size, which is huge. It doesn't matter the size, he's still scared and terrified, and Everage's performance is effective in the emotional journey.

There are a lot of great, small supporting roles, especially from real-life hip hop stars like Dave East and Seandrea "Dreezy" Sledge. They're real-life rappers playing rappers in the film. Emayatzy Corinealdi (Ballers and The Red Line) plays Vanessa, the principal at the school and Romelo's wife. Paul Walter Hauser (BlacKkKlansman and I, Tonya) plays Terrence, a white, record executive who recruits black artists and does so behind Romelo's back, despite the two supposedly working together. Hauser is notable because he's really having a breakout year in 2019. This is a breakout and incredible film though.

Rated TV-MA.
Running Time: 1 hr. and 50 mins.

Available on Netflix.