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"BlacKkKlansman," based on the true story of an
African-American police detective in the 1970s who infiltrated
the Ku Klux Klan, arrives in movie theaters on Friday.
Lee has said the movie is specifically timed to mark the
anniversary this weekend of last year's violent clashes between
white nationalists and anti-racist protesters in
Charlottesville, Virginia, in which one woman died.
Trump last year drew broad criticism for blaming both sides for
the violence and news footage of the protests is included in the
film.
"I want the guy in the White House to see it too. I don't say
his name though," Lee told Reuters Television at a Beverly Hills
premiere of the film on Wednesday.
"When I saw the horrific act of domestic, American homegrown
terrorism, I knew right away I wanted to do this," Lee said of
the events in Charlottesville.
Topher Grace, who plays 1970s Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke,
said the cast and crew were struck by the movie's contemporary
relevance while filming.
"It gets more and more timely with every second that passes,
sadly. This film shouldn't be more timely now than when it takes
place, but unfortunately it is," Grace said.
"BlacKkKlansman," also starring Adam Driver and John David
Washington, has won warm reviews, scoring a rare 100 percent
approval from top critics on aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes.
Several critics have called it Lee's best film in years.
The New York Times called it "a furious, funny, blunt and
brilliant confrontation with the truth. It’s an alarm clock
ringing in the midst of a historical nightmare."
(Reporting by Simon Thompson for Reuters Television)
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