By: Anton Massopust III

“The past is not dead.”

In the spirit of The Twilight Zone and Black Mirror comes Antebellum which means “Before the Civil War”. A young successful woman author and lecturer, Veronica (Janelle Moneae) finds herself in a forced-labor Plantation in the Deep South during the Civil War. She learns that disobedience or even speaking can lead to horrible brutality and punishment. But we find out that Veronica is not in the past, but in the present time and she becomes the target of a U.S. Senator who imprisons her and several others in a camp with Civil War reenactors who are reenacting a battle, and no one knows they are being held prisoner. 

With no way of finding a way to connect with the regular civilization, Veronica fights her way out of this camp, finds a cell phone and tells the outside world what is going on here, and the terrible place which hidden in plain sight and no one would ever know that this is going on.

   Antebellum is probably one of the weirdest movies that I’ve ever seen. The trailer was completely deceptive, and you think that this movie is about time travel, like Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five, and it isn’t at all what you are led to believe. You’re completely and utterly deceived. Through the first half of the movie I was completely fooled.

    The soundtrack is eerie and frightening, and the cinematography is gorgeous. The acting is good, but some characters are flushed out and some are not. This film will probably be nominated for several academy awards. They are great performances here and it is interesting plot. The film is packed with action and stomach wrenching brutality. Is it worth renting or watching? Yes, give it a try. You will either love it or hate it. I would say make your own decision what you think of it.