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The Book of Clarence is an out-of-the-box biblical adaptation that brings stories of the modern Black existence to the forefront. LaKeith Stanfield’s portrayal of Clarence is one that is relatable to the everyday person. It’s not new to create a film based on stories from the Bible, but you’ve never seen a biblical story featuring a main cast of Black actors.
A Relatable Story
Set in the Jesus times of 33 A.D., Clarence is a struggling Black man just trying to survive by any means necessary. He gets himself into a bind selling “lingon weed” and losing bets on chariot races with his bestie Elijah, played by RJ Cyler. His last chariot loss puts him in debt to Jebediah (Eric Kofi-Abrefa) with a 30-day repayment plan that sets off the race to get his money back before Jebediah breaks his neck.
The Book of Clarence is a race for financial freedom with moments of beautiful friendship, devotion to family, compassion for others, testing your beliefs, and forbidden love. Maybe we’ve never been in a such bind that we pretended to be the next Messiah, but we all know someone who’s done something strange for a little bit of change. Clarence’s story isn’t one that’s so farfetched that it becomes unrelatable.
Modern Influence
Samuel’s adaptation allows the teachings of the Good Book to flow effortlessly through the film and hold the same values we’ve come to know. While he does take his liberties with comedic moments and an amazing hip-hop soundtrack featuring artists like Jay-Z, Kid Cudi, Doja Cat, Lil Wayne, Kodak Black, Jorja Smith, and Shabba Ranks, he remains faithful to the Gospel in the surrounding dialog that pushes the story along. Clarence and Elijah may remind you of some of your best stoner friends because, while they like to have fun, they can’t deny the glory of Jesus for too long.
A Beautiful Combination
The Book of Clarence makes great use of the old architecture of their filming location in Italy while simultaneously crafting scenes that depict current day Black racial inequality and abuse from authority. Samuel’s take on this biblical epic shows the undeniable strength of the Black community when we band together. And, it was lovely to see that James McAvoy and Benedict Cumberbatch did an amazing job at portraying their characters beautifully while not taking the forefront in scenes with their fellow Black actors. With a cast of Alfre Woodard, Marianne-Jean Baptiste, David Oyelowo, Anna Diop, Omar Sy, Nicholas Pinnock, Babs Olusanmokun, and Teyana Taylor, this movie is sure to get patrons to the movies even if just out of pure curiosity. I’m excited to see how audiences react to this religious yet modern take on a Black man’s struggle in society.
