Ava DuVernay once said that one of her goals for The CW series Naomi was normalization rather than just representation. The effectiveness -- or ineffectiveness -- of representation has long been a point of contention among many in the Black community. Why bother with the book or screen when there's real life to deal with? While that's a fair point, there's a real power in seeing yourself reflected in your favorite media, a validation that comes from seeing other Black and Brown people be a big deal. Films like Reggie Yates's Pirates gleefully use that power for good -- and look great doing it.
Yates' directorial and writing debut Pirates is a coming-of-age odyssey. Set on New Year's Eve 1999, it follows three London boys, Cappo (Elliot Edusah), Two Tonne (Jordan Peters), and Kidda (Reda Elazouar), as they seek tickets to an end-of-the-century rager and a way to deal with the life changes just over the horizon. The trio, and the film itself, move with a hyperactive swagger at a mile a minute, popping off jokes and character beats alike to the rhythm of '90s UK garage music. Pirates' soundtrack is essentially the film's calling card, one that goes a long way in setting up a London rarely seen on film. Yates's London is small and multicultural, unique but approachable, a huge city that's also a community, that's also a home. Even for those not familiar with the genre, it's not hard to imagine that the '90s garage scene was much the same.
The music even extends to the main trio who, besides clearly loving the genre, make up the pirate radio-famous Ice Cold Crew, with Cappo as the manager, Two as the MC, and Kidda as the DJ. While Cap is away at university, Kidda and Two start to see real progress with the ICC, and they're eager to have their manager back. However, when Cap returns for the holiday, it's clear that he's ready to move on, though he doesn't mention this to his friends.
That's the tension at the center of the story, but the true heart of it is the relationship between the three boys. The ICC truly love one another like family. While that love is challenged, it's never questioned or mocked, which leaves room for them to truly express it. Cappo, Two Tonne, and Kidda spend nearly the whole movie attached at the hip, driving around town, singing to the radio, and having a good time. Even in the bad moments, like when Kidda embarrasses himself at a barbershop or runs afoul of the lady at the patty shop, the other two are right there, if only to prevent him from making things worse.
Beyond the three being allowed to truly, openly care for one another is the fact that they're also allowed to be happy. Every frame of Pirates buzzes with the joy of this trio being reunited, even as Cappo puts off possibly breaking them up for good. It's electrically infectious, and the whole movie feels like a celebration because of it. The bittersweet changing of the times and the shifting shape of friendship sting a lot less when you get to spend so much time watching the ICC be absolutely together. It's the epitome of Black and Brown boy joy and something cinema needs by the barrel.
Stories about Black youth so frequently fixate on hard times, tough cities, and deadly encounters, as if that's all there is. If a person lives somewhere with no Black or Brown people around, and all they see are those stories, they may come to think that's true. More importantly, for Black and Brown kids who grew up happy without or even despite those things, only being exposed to Tragedy of Color on the screen can make them feel like they missed something, like their own life experience and their own happiness doesn't count. "Not Black enough," some would say. While it's notably lightweight where its female characters are concerned, Pirates makes an excellent case for representation via normalization by focusing on the happiness of its main three. The ICC are hyper, loud, goofy, and full of misplaced pomp -- but that's normal, and that normalcy is good. Pirates is one-of-a-kind, but hopefully, more films follow in its frantic, garage-loving footsteps.
Pirates is available now on Digital and On Demand.