She instills in him the lessons that so many of us Black men were taught as children: keep your head down, your mouth shut, and stay out of white people’s way. When it’s suggested he should go to Mississippi to experience life down there with relatives, Mamie is rightfully terrified. It’s why she left and raised Emmett, who she calls “Bo”, up north. There’s racism in Chicago, as he experiences first hand, but nothing like in Mississippi. He also has no idea what it’s really like down South. He’s an outgoing one, but not without a nervous stutter.
We’re introduced to the vibrant Chicago kid Emmett (Jalyn Hall, great), and the loving, playful relationship he shares with Mamie. The murder of Emmett Till hangs like a dark cloud over the opening segments. And while Till accomplishes those things, and features arguably the finest single lead performance of the year, it’s not without a few problems that keep it from being an outright success. Those who are most uncomfortable should be made to feel that way. So the best thing to do is to lean into how difficult the story is because it should be difficult.
That is a noble effort, and Chukwu clearly recognizes the challenge at hand. And I came to the conclusion that this film does not exist to be satisfying, and certainly not to entertain, but to keep the Till story present and alive at a time when so many are trying to disappear black history because it makes certain people (likely guilty racists) uncomfortable. We know of the horrific 1955 murder of Emmett Till while he vacationed with family in Mississippi, and the impact of his mother Mamie Till-Mobley (Danielle Deadwyler) as she forced America to look at the savageness of the crime, invigorating the Civil Rights movement. There was a big part of me that felt this story can’t be told in any way that’s satisfying.
I’ve been grappling with Till for a couple of weeks, trying to untangle my thoughts on director Chinonye Chukwu’s stirring drama about a nightmarish chapter in American history.
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