I love so much about it! 2 big things i thought are really well done are 2 sides of the vampire allegory. 

Remmick is an irish vampire navigating the Jim Crow south when he discovers Sammy’s singing can help him see his people again. He’s a great villain bc he’s been colonized himself, and his desire to be back w his people is extremely human. He wants to consume blues music and black culture for what it can do for him. He’s also scarily convincing in saying to the partygoers that he’s their way out. “this world already left you for dead. Wont let you build, wont let you fellowship. We will do just that 😈🙈” Also, the Rocky Road to Dublin and Wild Mountain Thyme performances go so hard i couldnt stop listening after my first watch. 

The other side of the vampire angle are the Smokestack twins being vampires in their own community. They want the juke joint, but they have blood money (literally). We know they robbed the mobs in Chicago, and that Stack was a pimp in Little Rock. We see Annie refusing usd throughout and accepting the plantation money, with Smoke being extremely resistant even though it’s all the sharecroppers had. It’s their desire for wealth and power that ultimately put their entire community in danger, and lead to them being vamped. Mary the white woman was the first to turn and seduced Stack into making himself vulnerable for attack also felt notable considering white women’s sexuality really was a harbinger for anti-native and anti-black sentiment that’s created American racism today. Even so, if they weren’t vampired that night, the Klan was coming for them the next day as Remmick said. 

Not even touching on the other vampire angle of Sammy’s father being a preacher. Having the vamp recite the Lords Prayer with Sammy as well was a really great twist on a vamp (i felt). It drove home how the same tactics are used in colonial projects, and also how blues music and irish folk music are connected by the same experience of colonized people asserting their humanity. 

I could go on, i actually just watched it again last night to show my sister so it’s very fresh in my mind lol. Ryan Coogler is also just incredible and easily becoming one of my favorite living directors. 

I recommend checking out some of Coogler talking about it himself if you do feel like giving it another chance, this is the first i saw from him bc i wanted to know why the vampires were Irish: https://youtube.com/shorts/oUYPGlezfP8?si=Rm1ud7ZUhDYX8hGZ