Yahoo News ‘Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist’ Turns a Robbery into a Split-Screen Mini Movie
“Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist,” the eight-episode miniseries (currently streaming on Peacock), documents two major events in Atlanta’s history. While Muhammad Ali made his professional boxing comeback with a win against Jerry Quarry at Atlanta’s Municipal Auditorium on October 26, 1970, a group of hoodlums robbed the Black Mafia of more than $1 million in cash and jewelry at a nearby after-party. As a result, Atlanta eventually became a Black Mecca.
At the center of “Fight Night” (created by Shaye Ogbonna, based on his true-crime podcast) is street hustler Gordon “Chicken Man” Williams (Kevin Hart), who hosts the after-party in honor of New York mobster Frank Moten (Samuel L. Jackson), who controls the gangs. While Chicken Man sees Atlanta as a potential Black Vegas, Moten has more ambitious plans for turning the city into a Black Mecca. But just when it looks like they can work together, the robbery turns Chicken Man into the prime suspect. In the aftermath, he must redeem himself (ironically, with the help of an old nemesis: Don Cheadle’s Detective JD Hudson) to prevent Moten from killing him.
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The heist, interestingly, becomes a mini-movie in Episodes 2 (“Round Two: Fight Night”) and 3 (“Round Three: Black Vegas”), weaving back and forth between the fight, the bond between Ali (Dexter Darden) and Hudson, assigned to protect him, and the planning of the robbery, told in flashback. Stylistically, the show conveys a blaxploitation vibe, while, editorially, it effectively makes use of split-screen cutting, inspired by the innovative Steve McQueen heist film, “The Thomas Crown Affair.”
For story editor Maxwell Towson, the throughline was the Black American Dream, particularly for the criminal class. “So even having ‘The Star Spangled Banner’ playing over the robbery in the second episode tried to drive that home,” he told IndieWire, “but also you see Chicken Man’s dream become a nightmare.
“What’s great about the show,” he continued, “is you see these ebbs and flows of what this really matters to you when it comes to your American Dream and what you’re willing to sacrifice for it. So, in Chicken Man’s example, he thinks having this party will be what sets him apart and put him in Frank’s crew, whereas Frank thinks land [ownership] is the thing that sets him apart.”
The robbery begins with two masked men at the front door in split-screen, divided by a shot of the MC at the start of the Ali fight. They enter the house, accompanied by a fast-moving hand-held camera, long takes, and more split screens to hasten the pace. They tell everyone to get on the floor and hand over the money. But the robbers realize they’re too early and prepare for the rest of the guests to arrive.
“What’s fascinating about the heist is that the same theme runs through there too because these guys have their own American Dream,” Towson said. “And they basically get in over their head in what they thought was a simple house party. They don’t really understand exactly what they’re dealing with when this Black Mafia ends up getting taken hostage by them [at the beginning of Episode 3].”
But it was important to break up the frenetic pace of the early part of the heist with an extended flashback to explain the specialized roles of the robbers, how they case the house, and then plant an informant on the inside (Chloe Bailey’s Lena) to keep an eye on everyone. “The intention was to meet the robbers and see how the robbery is going to take place, like in a traditional heist film, but also try to subvert that once you get to the robbery,” Towson added.
Once everyone is held hostage in the basement and the pace settles down, the heist becomes a character study between Chicken Man and Moten and how pressure mounts for Chicken Man to do something. “The intention of that was pretty much to put Chicken Man in peril immediately, and in a situation where he couldn’t talk his way out of it,” said Towson. “Whereas, with Frank, this is the first time he’s been in a scenario where he hasn’t been the most powerful person on screen. That’s why we wanted to give Frank that moment [to strike back] because he has the experience, he’s the tactician, he’s the boss.”
It’s a violent, bloody, chaotic escape, with a lot of split-screening. “It’s interesting how it’s cut,” Towson added. “We definitely wanted it to be very hectic. And you don’t necessarily know where everyone goes. If someone is hurt or taken out, it’s like a surprise to everyone. We wanted the feeling of, if you’re running from this robbery, you’re not necessarily keeping track of the people you came with. Chicken Man doesn’t really have a plan. Except for Frank, who knows immediately that he’s going to leave with his people, and he’s going to track down the person in charge.”
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