“As individuals, we have an impossible battle. As a collective, we stand a chance.” Amazon has released a final “extended preview” trailer for Steve McQueen’s Small Axe, his thrilling new anthology of five films streaming on Prime Video later this month. A few of them just premiered at the New York & London Film Festivals to rave reviews. Small Axe consists of five different films – titled Mangrove, Lovers Rock, Alex Wheatle, Education, and Red, White and Blue. Based on true stories, they each celebrate little known stories of Black pride and resilience. Learn about what happens when even ordinary people stand up to police brutality and racial injustice to achieve something transformative. The casts include Letitia Wright, John Boyega, Malachi Kirby, Shaun Parkes, Rochenda Sandall, Alex Jennings, Jack Lowden, Micheal Ward, and Amarah-Jae St. Aubyn. The more we see from this, the better it looks! I can’t wait to watch all five. Each film looks beautiful in its own ways. Lucky we get to enjoy them in a few more weeks.
Here’s the extended trailer (+ poster) for Steve McQueen’s anthology Small Axe, from Amazon’s YouTube:
You can still watch the first teaser trailer for McQueen’s Mangrove film here, or the other full trailer here.
“If you are the big tree, we are the small axe.” -Jamaican proverb. Small Axe is a collection of five films inspired by real-life events about ordinary people showing courage, belief, and resilience to overcome injustice and achieve something transformative in their West Indian community. Set from the late 1960s to the mid-1980s, the films each tell a different story involving London’s West Indian community, whose lives have been shaped by their own force of will despite rampant racism and discrimination. It is produced by Turbine Studios and Steve McQueen’s Lammas Park for BBC One with Amazon Studios co-producing in the US. The five films that make up Small Axe are: Mangrove, Lovers Rock, Alex Wheatle, Education, and Red, White and Blue. Small Axe is directed by British filmmaker Steve McQueen, of the films Hunger, Shame, 12 Years a Slave, and Widows previously. The scripts are by Steve McQueen, Alastair Siddons, and Courttia Newland. Three of the films will premiere at this year’s New York Film Festival. Amazon Studios will release the entire Small Axe anthology series of five films starting on November 20th this fall. Look good so far?
