But let’s start at the beginning. As we meet Smoke and Stack (both played with thoughtful precision by Jordan), the prodigal twins of Clarksdale, Mississippi, their ambitions are clear: after spending years as enforcers for Al Capone and bootleggers in Chicago, the boys are back to open up their very own juke joint. They prefer the South, the devil they know. As they tell their cousin Sammie (newcomer Miles Caton is a revelation), “Chicago is a plantation, just with taller buildings.” Smoke is more reserved and pessimistic, the “bad cop” of the duo, while Stack is unrestrained and slightly more boisterous, the risktaking, jazz-loving lil’ brother. Their love interests also showcase the differences between the identical twins: Smoke’s former love is Annie (a wise, raw, and riveting Wunmi Mosaku), a spiritual medicine woman still reeling from the grief of losing their infant child, whose potions and hoodoo knowledge come in handy later. And Stack’s old flame is Mary (a saucy and unguarded Hailee Steinfeld), his white-passing childhood friend with Black ancestry that shows up in her relations, not her face, who is still pissed at Stack for ghosting her.
