It’s that time of the year again when all the poets of the world rejoice! That’s right, April is National Poetry Writing Month, or NaPoWriMo, and that means writing a poem a day, or in my case a poem and movie review a day. I’ll admit that some of my recent poems have been rather perfunctory, but this month should lend me some added inspiration. Thus, the reviews will be shorter and the poems (hopefully) better. I’ll be drawing from the NaPoWriMo website for daily prompts and inspiration, and while I may fall behind, I’ll do my best to keep up with the daily pace. Here’s to an exciting month of poetry ahead!
Here’s my review of Papillon for MovieRob’s March Genre Grandeur of Prison films. Steve McQueen shines in this good, not great, memoir of one man’s escape attempts from a French prison in South America. Check out the other prison film reviews for this month too!
Of all the Star Trek series I’ve seen, my favorite is undoubtedly Voyager, a classic example of a show that started with promise and kept getting better as it went. I wavered on whether or not to make a list of my top episodes, unsure if anyone would even care, but after learning of other fans, namely the lovely ladies of Violet’s Veg*n E-Comics, I couldn’t resist any longer. I’ll likely do a favorites list for all my favorite shows at some point.
For those who don’t know, Voyager is in the same universe as all the other Star Trek series and is the last to occur chronologically. It’s basically a space-faring version of The Odyssey, with the title ship (and a rebel Maquis ship) being blasted into the Delta Quadrant 70,000 light years from Earth, and the two crews must combine to begin the 75-year journey home, with quite a few adventures along the way. The best part of Voyager is its characters, all of whom feel like a family by the end, from Kate Mulgrew’s first female Trek series Captain Kathryn Janeway to Robert Picardo’s egotistical holographic Doctor (“I’m a doctor, not a tricorder.”) to Ethan Phillips’ ever lovable Talaxian cook Neelix. With its far-flung setting, it also explores planets, aliens, and themes unseen in other Trek series and features some of the best time travel episodes of the franchise.
Of course, no series is immune to some duds, and I don’t want anyone’s first exposure to Voyager to be “Threshold” or “The Fight” or “Barge of the Dead.” Thus, for fans and not-yet-fans alike, here are my top twelve episodes of Star Trek: Voyager. I say “not-yet-fans” because I would hope seeing the show at its best would win over any potential viewer. Because Voyager rules! And so the countdown begins….
“11:59” – Season 5
Oddly enough, the first episode here doesn’t even take place on Voyager. When Captain Janeway recounts the story of one of her forebears, we’re treated to an endearing flashback of her ancestor (also played by Mulgrew) falling in love with a nostalgic bookstore owner (Kevin Tighe of Lost) on New Year’s Eve of 2001.
“Before and After” – Season 3
The episodes with Kes (Jennifer Lien) weren’t always the best, despite the uniqueness of a budding telepath with a nine-year lifespan, but “Before and After” was easily her best episode. She begins to live her life backwards, starting as an old woman and trying to figure out what’s happening before she jumps further back in time.
“Shattered” – Season 7
Every series likes to have some kind of recap episode for the more nostalgic fans, and “Shattered” again uses time travel for that very purpose. After a warp core accident, first officer Chakotay finds himself the only one unaffected when the ship is broken up into different sections of its own history. Kudos for all the references to past episodes!
“Nemesis” – Season 4
Another Chakotay episode, this time he crash-lands in the middle of an alien war and becomes a pawn in the struggle. There’s a potent message about how both sides of war encourage hate for the enemy, and I love the unique alien vocabulary used (“glimpses” in place of eyes, “trunks” in place of trees). Seriously, this episode should have won an Emmy for its writing.
“Rise” – Season 3
There was always a great odd-couple dynamic between gregarious Neelix and logical Vulcan Tuvok, and the tension finally bubbled to the surface in “Rise,” where they must work together with some disaster survivors to escape a planet’s atmosphere via a literal ground-to-space elevator. The concept alone is cool!
“Equinox, Parts 1 and 2” – Seasons 5/6
Yes, I’m counting two-parters together. Guest-starring John Savage and Titus Welliver (aka “the Man in Black” from Lost), this double-header that segued from season 5 to season 6 provided an excellent contrast between the straight-laced Starfleet ideals of Voyager and the more ruthless tactics of another stranded ship, the Equinox. Ghost-like aliens and an evil Doctor made this a memorable season finale/opener.
“Year of Hell, Parts 1 and 2” – Season 4
Fleshing out a future time period seen in “Before and After,” “Year of Hell” pit Voyager against Kurtwood Smith’s Annorax, a man with a time-altering ship trying to erase other species to restore his own people’s former glory. This episode shows Janeway and her crew at their most desperate, proving why she’s such a resilient leader.
“Blink of an Eye” – Season 6
With subtly transcendent themes, “Blink of an Eye” has one of the more unique set-ups for a Trek episode, a planet that revolves so rapidly that years and centuries on its surface pass within hours outside its atmosphere. When Voyager is caught in its gravity, the crew watches an entire civilization develop before their eyes, and the viewers get to see a closer perspective from the ground. Lost alert for Daniel Dae Kim as one of the planet’s inhabitants.
“Timeless” – Season 5
It’s always a big deal when a series reaches its 100th episode, and Voyager marked the milestone with a fantastic time travel tale. When the ship is destroyed during an attempt to get home sooner, two survivors risk everything to undo the doomed mission.
“Future’s End, Parts 1 and 2” – Season 3
Wow, there sure were a lot of time travel episodes, and all great ones. In this two-parter, a timeship captain from the future tries to destroy Voyager to prevent an eventual disaster, and a mishap sends both ships back to the 21st century. With shades of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, it also boasts an unlikely villain in Ed Begley, Jr., and introduces an important plot device for the Doctor that would prove invaluable in future episodes. Oh, and early Sarah Silverman is in it too.
“Deadlock” – Season 2
While it doesn’t seem to get much attention compared with, say, the two-parters, “Deadlock” is science fiction at its best. When the ship is attacked (which happens a lot, now that I think about it), a spatial anomaly divides the ship in two in a most unique way.
“Scorpion, Parts 1 and 2” – Seasons 3/4
To compare it to a classic Next Generation episode, “Scorpion” is Voyager’s “Best of Both Worlds.” With a story set in the Delta Quadrant, it was only a matter of time before their journey ran into the home turf of the Borg. A turning point for the series between seasons three and four, it pits Janeway and company against not only the Borg but a new species unlike any seen before, which threatens even the Borg collective. A tense and rather scary tone, a great new background score, and the introduction of Jeri Ryan’s Seven of Nine make this one of the high points of the series.
And here are the runners-up, which were not easy to whittle down, considering how fantastic all of them are. My VC likes most of my picks but also has a few episodes I didn’t choose that she is fond of and wanted to highlight. In the order they aired:
Season 1:
“Caretaker” – Series premiere
“Faces” – First major development for B’Elanna Torres
VC Picks: “Time and Again” and “Heroes and Demons”
Season 2:
“Resistance” – Sad episode for Janeway with a great guest role for Joel Grey
“Meld” – Tuvok tries to help a psychopath on board (Brad Dourif)
“Tuvix” – Tuvok and Neelix fuse in a transporter accident; silly concept exploring serious sci-fi themes
“Resolutions” – Janeway and Chakotay: what could have been….
“Basics, Parts 1 and 2” – Season 2 finale with the crew forced onto a primitive planet
VC Picks: “The 37s” and “Lifesigns”
Season 3:
“Flashback” – A cool revisiting of the events of Star Trek VI, complete with George Takei and Grace Lee Whitney
“Real Life” – Possibly the show’s biggest tearjerker with the Doctor
“Displaced” – The crew is slowly replaced by aliens.
VC Picks: “Remember” and “Blood Fever”
Season 4:
“Scientific Method” – Do you ever feel like a headache is torture? There could be a scary reason why.
“The Killing Game, Parts 1 and 2” – A race of hunters brainwash the crew for holographic sport. It’s the only place you’ll see Nazis and Klingons side by side.
“Living Witness” – An amazing what-if episode questioning the accuracy of history.
VC Picks: “Day of Honor,” “Hunters,” “Prey,” “Unforgettable,” and “Demon”
Season 5:
“Night” – Season 5 premiere with Janeway at her most self-doubting.
“Nothing Human” – Deep ethical questions, guest-starring David Clennon as a Cardassian
“Counterpoint” – Music, romance, and mistrust abound
“Macrocosm” – Attack of the giant killer germs! The new movie Life might have drawn some inspiration from this.
“Bride of Chaotica!” – Just a fun, silly homage to old-fashioned cheesy sci-fi
“Gravity” – Tuvok and Tom Paris stranded on an invisible desert planet, guest-starring Lori Petty
“Course: Oblivion” – Deeply sad what-if episode
“Think Tank” – Alien geniuses make an offer Voyager can’t refuse, guest-starring Jason Alexander
“Juggernaut” – Awesome horror-thriller episode on a deserted(?) toxic waste vessel
“Someone to Watch Over Me” – Poor Doctor!
“Relativity” – Voyager does it again with an amazing use of time travel.
VC Picks: “In the Flesh,” “Thirty Days,” and “The Disease”
Season 6:
“Riddles” – Tuvok and Neelix bond when Tuvok is mentally impaired.
“One Small Step” – A testament to the importance of “early” space travel
“Fair Haven” – The crew enjoy a holographic Irish village.
“Life Line” – The Doctor gets to meet the scientist who designed him after himself.
“Unimatrix Zero, Parts 1 and 2” – Season finale and a game-changer for the Borg collective.
VC Picks: “Pathfinder,” “Memorial,” “Ashes to Ashes”, “Live Fast and Prosper,” and “Muse”
Season 7:
“Flesh and Blood, Parts 1 and 2” – The Doctor must choose between his crew and renegade holograms.
“Lineage” – Big character development for B’Elanna
“Workforce, Parts 1 and 2” – The crew is once again brainwashed as workers on an industrial planet.
“Homestead” – Oh, Neelix. *sniff*
“Endgame, Parts 1 and 2” – Not perfect, but satisfying series finale
VC Picks: “Body and Soul,” “Author, Author,” and “Friendship One”
And to wrap it all up, here’s the beautiful opening theme and credits, which I also included in my post of Voyager musical highlights. Now I want to watch this show again!
Be sure to vote for the best video-game movie adaptation in Round 5 of Opinion Battles! Sure, video game movies usually stink, but there’s some fun to be had even in this genre. Though I’m not much of a video-game player, I picked the flawed but visually interesting Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within. Check out what others chose and vote for your favorite!
Over the past 25 odd years videos games have become a new stream of entertainment, so naturally Hollywood has decided to jump on the bandwagon and turn these lengthy stories into one of films, a lot get highly criticised but for the fans of film that never played the games we get certain stories that work on film. With the final chapter of the Resident Evil franchise coming to the cinema it is now time for us to pick our favourite video game adaptations.
If you want to take part in the next round of Opinion Battles we will be picking our Favourite Film from 1987, email your choices to moviereviews101@yahoo.co.ukby 19h March 2017.
Darren – Movie Reviews 101
Silent Hill
When Silent Hill first hit the cinema I want to see the film, I never played the game as I…
It’s magical in Paris,
At least in film and book,
Where painters dance
And find romance
And anyone can cook.
Real Paris may be different;
But skyline stars still shine,
Where love can stir
And dreams occur;
That Paris can be mine.
____________
MPAA rating: All (easily a G)
I do have a soft spot for musicals, but for some reason, I’d never gotten around to watching what many consider one of the pinnacles of classic musical cinema. Luckily, it’s one of my Blindspots. An American in Paris combines some of the best aspects of the genre, particularly Gene Kelly’s dancing and George Gershwin’s music, but there’s something lacking too.
I’d only ever seen the famous dance scene that serves as the film’s centerpiece, and since that is largely symbolic, I wasn’t sure what to expect as far as a plot. Kelly plays struggling artist and American expat Jerry Mulligan, who lives contentedly in Paris while periodically displaying his paintings on the street. Much to his surprise, he attracts the attention of wealthy socialite Milo Roberts (Nina Foch), who volunteers to sponsor his talent, even if Jerry’s not sure she’s doing so solely out of the goodness of her heart. After a bit of love at first sight, he seeks to woo a young Parisian (Leslie Caron), who is torn between love and loyalty. It’s a good thing Kelly is so darn likable because his character is a bit of a jerk at times, such as how he pursues his love interest without a thought to the other woman accompanying him, but for the most part, Kelly’s natural charisma engages wonderfully with his costars.
While the plot works well enough, the musical numbers overshadow the story connecting them, and the fact that most of the Gershwin songs were previously written and don’t have much bearing on what’s going on makes them feel a bit disjointed. They shouldn’t feel like this, but the songs are padding for an uninspired plot, even if they’re the best aspects of the film. I honestly could have skipped the storyline and simply watched the musical numbers, which would make for a great montage but not exactly a great film.
There’s still some superlative style to this Vincente Minnelli-directed lark, from the personable introduction to the three main male characters to the show-stopping pageantry of the songs. One dream sequence with Oscar Levant as Jerry’s unemployed pianist friend may be one of those filler numbers, but it employs some visual trickery that was likely very innovative at the time. And, having heard a good deal of Gershwin in Mr. Holland’s Opus, it was nice to see one of its original visual accompaniments.
An American in Paris may be a beloved classic, but it’s nowhere near the level of Kelly’s Singin’ in the Rain. The plot is a charming but average romance that completely ignores and offers no closure to the side characters, and even the grand 17-minute tap dance/ballet climax set to Gershwin’s title music ran too long and threatened to lose my interest at times. I don’t want to knock it too hard, but there are much better musicals than the Best Picture of 1951. Still, the musical scenes should easily put a smile on anyone’s face, and I can watch Gene Kelly’s effortless talent any day.
Best line: (Jerry) “Back home, everyone said I didn’t have any talent. They might be saying the same thing over here, but it sounds better in French.”
Now that I’ve reviewed all the Best Picture nominees, with the exception of Moonlight, I thought I’d rank them to give a clearer picture of my regard for each of them. As I said in my La La Land post, 2016 has produced one of the best crops of awards contenders in a while, most of which have earned a spot on my Top 365 list. While I haven’t seen the actual Best Picture winner, I’m still convinced that La La Land should have won, even though most of the others would have been worthy of winning in a weaker year. So here they are again in order:
And although my third blogiversary post listed my favorite newly watched films last year, here’s also a Top Twelve list of my favorite films of 2016 overall, just to put the previous ranking in perspective. I still haven’t seen nearly as many as a lot of bloggers, including ones of interest like Passengers, Moana, The Red Turtle, Queen of Katwe, and A Monster Calls, but this is the first year that I feel I’ve seen enough to warrant a list like this. I don’t think I’ve seen anyone else with this particular ranking, so at least I know this list is all my own. Thus, here’s my countdown of all the films I enjoyed or would recommend from 2016, from least to best. I hope 2017 will be just as good or better!
Though shots ring out both far and near, And men engage in hate and fear, I will not. I’ll do my duty, honorbound, But for my faith, I’ll stand my ground, As I ought. Though every man insist that I Should join their wish that others die, I cannot. And when war’s done, my heart’s belief Will hold more worth and bear less grief Than they thought. ___________________ MPAA rating: R (solely for violence)
Perhaps appropriately considering its subject matter, Hacksaw Ridge caused me a bit of a crisis of conscience. I don’t typically watch extremely violent movies, which is why I’ve avoided films like Braveheart and anything Tarantino, and I was very hesitant to see Hacksaw Ridge after hearing of the intensity of its battle sequences. My VC, who is of the same mind, urged me not to, but there were enough positive elements inherent in the story of conscientious objector and war hero Desmond Doss that I decided to risk it. That actually made Hacksaw Ridge the first R-rated film I’d seen in the theater, and by the end, I was glad I did.
Mel Gibson may have shot his reputation in the foot years ago, but his talent as a filmmaker is undeniable, and it’s surprising and inspiring that he’s been somewhat forgiven by Hollywood, based on the number of Oscar nominations and wins Hacksaw Ridge received. His latest film has a lot in common with The Passion of the Christ; both carry deep religious meaning for Christians especially and also indulge in some gut-wrenching bloodshed that mark them as clearly not for everyone. It took me a while to work up the nerve for Passion of the Christ, but now I watch it every Good Friday; Hacksaw Ridge, likewise, requires a strong stomach in parts, but the overall story makes it worth it.
Andrew Garfield hardly seemed like an obvious choice for the potential Oscar-magnet role of Doss, but he was a massive surprise; he’s no longer that second-rate Spider-Man. As Desmond, he’s folksy but determined, earnest but firm, kind but tenacious, a man who wants to help others at any cost to himself, in short a true hero. Other casting examples were also less-than-obvious choices, such as Vince Vaughn as Desmond’s drill sergeant with a deadpan sense of humor or Hugo Weaving as his war-haunted father. Everyone involved does a phenomenal job, particularly Weaving, and even if the collection of fellow soldiers Desmond meets in boot camp don’t all register at first viewing, the quality of the acting never lapses.
The film is basically broken into two parts: the first half sees Desmond enlist as a medic and deal with the consequences and persecution from his refusal to carry a gun, while the second focuses on the decisive battle at Hacksaw Ridge and proves this supposed coward as anything but. I’ve seen some reviews criticize the beginning as preachy and heavy-handed, but I feel that one’s opinion of Desmond and his father waxing eloquent about freedom of religion and the Constitution depends on how dearly one holds such conservative values. I found it refreshing for a mainstream film to extol the First Amendment and the right of someone to serve his country as his faith allows. Desmond may be a Seventh Day Adventist with views that not every Christian holds, but his right to uphold his own principles is the same.
Even those rolling their eyes at the first half have praised the second for its realistic war scenes, and they are indeed intense and visceral. The explosions are constant, the body count is high, the headshots are many, and I may have spent most of those scenes with my eyes off to the side, watching in my peripheral vision. With superb editing, Gibson certainly nails the visualization of war as hell, but I don’t quite agree with those who say that it’s not gratuitous if it’s realistic; the gruesome double headshot that kicks off the carnage is a prime example. I still insist that films like Gettysburg and most of Glory are proof that war scenes don’t have to be gory to be effective, but the hell Desmond endures does make his courage in the face of it even more incredible. The violence may be an extreme, but at least here it serves as a counterpoint and contrast to the main character’s grace and perseverance, not unlike Passion of the Christ. I will say that, now that I’ve seen this, I do feel a bit less anxious about seeing Saving Private Ryan as a Blindspot pick later this year.
Though the worst moments of battle were extreme, it luckily wasn’t constant. It’s when the shooting stops that Desmond’s role as a medic and hero kicks in. As he recovers the wounded of Hacksaw Ridge and prays to save just “one more,” the tension never lets up, and Desmond demonstrates the valor and backbone his fellow soldiers assumed he lacked. I loved how the one time he does touch a gun, it’s for a wholly practical purpose in one of the most exciting scenes.
There’s little doubt in my mind that Hacksaw Ridge is one of the best war films I’ve seen, made even better by concluding with interviews with the real Desmond Doss. Some may consider it cheesy but appreciate the war scenes, while I tolerated the bloody battles and embraced everything else. Gibson seems to excel at making religious themes accessible, and what some call preachy, I call laudable. Even if some scenes are hard to watch, few films can match the selfless courage on display in Hacksaw Ridge.
Best line: (Desmond) “It isn’t right that other men should fight and die, that I would just be sitting at home safe. I need to serve. I got the energy and the passion to serve as a medic, right in the middle with the other guys. No less danger, just… while everybody else is taking life, I’m going to be saving it. With the world so set on tearing itself apart, it doesn’t seem like such a bad thing to me to wanna put a little bit of it back together.”
Don’t forget to vote for your least favorite Oscar-winning actor in Round 4 of Opinion Battles! Of the many overrated possibilities, I had to go with Kevin Kline’s despicable role in A Fish Called Wanda. Sure, he was good in it, but I hated him! Pick your least favorite performance too.
Least Favourite Oscar Winning Performance from an Actor in Leading or Supporting Role
The Oscars are around the corner and we all know that people either love or hate the Oscars committee decisions. We have had the best or the best winning Oscars and after looking at our Favourite we need to look at our Least Favourite this time around.
If you want to join in Opinion Battles our next round will be Favourite Video Game Adaption. Send you choices to moviereviews101@yahoo.co.ukby 5th March 2017.
Darren – Movie Reviews 101
Michael Caine– The Cider House Rules
Dr Wilbur Larch is a performance I do enjoy but when you see the performance it beat you have to question the decision for his choice as a win, Michael Clarke Duncan (Green Mile), Tom Cruise (Magnolia) and Jude Law (Talent Mr Ripley) who could all…
I saw a young boy among beggars,
A large metal spoon in his fist.
He’d found it somewhere
In a state of despair,
Too terribly lost to be missed.
I sipped at my soup in the window,
Entranced by his curious stare.
With a ravenous look,
Every mouthful I took
He mimicked and sipped at the air.
I could have just smiled and left then,
Averted my eyes toward the door,
But I gazed at this boy
With a spoon for a toy
As if he’d never used one before.
While others passed by the poor beggars,
I crossed the street, frenzied and thronged.
Soon at the boy’s side
At the turn of his tide,
I helped him find where he belonged.
__________________
MPAA rating: PG-13
So this is why one of the first things my parents taught me to memorize was our home address! Lion may have been overshadowed by the more prestigious Best Picture nominees, but it’s an outstanding film and one likely to leave viewers reaching for the tissues by the end. Directed by debuting director Garth Davis, it is based on the true-life story of Saroo Brierley, following him from a lost boy in India to his adoptive home in Australia and back.
Young Sunny Pawar portrays Saroo as a five-year-old, who resides in a small town in India, where his mother, sister, and elder brother Guddu (Abhishek Bharate) eke out a poor but happy life. When Guddu unwisely brings Saroo along for a job near a train station, Saroo accidentally ends up trapped on a train, hurtling away from home for miles before arriving at a foreign place where he can’t even speak the local dialect. It’s utterly upsetting for the boy and similarly disorienting for the audience as Saroo calls pitifully for help that never comes. From then on, his life becomes a series of rude awakenings; every time he falls asleep, he awakes to some new danger or peculiarity, and only the kindness of strangers leads him to a chance at happiness with the Brierleys (Nicole Kidman and David Wenham) in Australia.
Once Saroo grows up into Oscar nominee Dev Patel, the film loses some steam, focusing on his self-destructive relationship with his girlfriend (Rooney Mara) and his online pursuit of his original family. It’s hard to make a Google Earth search compelling, but the film does its best, and the end result of Saroo’s quest is undoubtedly worth it. As good as Patel is, the brightest point of the second half, aside from the ending, is Nicole Kidman as his adoptive mother Sue, the kind of patient and loving parent every lost child deserves. It’s understandable that Saroo initially feels guilty about searching for his first home, afraid to seem ungrateful for Sue’s affections, but their scenes together capture the sensitive and unconstrained bond between mother and son.
There’s more than just the acting to praise, though. For example, the score by Dustin O’Halloran and Hauschka is gorgeous and perfectly enhances the emotion of the film. The artistry also extends to the cinematography, which is lush and vivid, especially the overhead landscape shots that show off the natural beauty of both India and Australia.
While I did get a bit misty-eyed, the end didn’t quite bring me to tears, though that’s more on me than the film since I heard a few sniffles in the theater. My VC hasn’t seen it yet, but I suspect she’ll have a stronger reaction than I, especially since she always bawls at the end of tearjerkers like The Color Purple. Perhaps one reason I particularly enjoyed Lion is that it fits into my beloved, self-titled genre of the “Meet-‘Em-and-Move-On movie,” which follows a character through various acquaintances and ends with a reunion. (For further clarification, I compiled a list of my favorites.) It’s this kind of film that packs the strongest emotional punch for me, and it’s been a while since such a film was made to Oscar caliber. The source of its title may not be apparent at first, but Lion is a tribute to the transformative power of adoption and a poignant journey of a film not to be overlooked.
Best line: (Sue Brierley, to Saroo) “Because we both felt as if… the world has enough people in it. Have a child, couldn’t guarantee it will make anything better. But to take a child that’s suffering like you boys were. Give you a chance in the world. That’s something.”
The role of a father’s not easy to fill;
The best of intentions can leave a bad taste,
And efforts that some might consider a waste
Can trouble their progeny still.
A father can favor or ruin a child,
Although they may try to resist.
A fine line exists between slaps on the wrist
And a rift to stay unreconciled.
Though not every father will coddle or kiss,
They impact the lives they create.
A father may foster affection or hate
But later is easy to miss.
_________________
MPAA rating: PG-13
Movies have so many different elements to catch one’s attention—the score, the direction, the locations—that the acting can sometimes be an afterthought, important but not the be-all-end-all for a success. When it comes to a play, with its limited sets and reliance on dialogue, the acting is everything, and the same applies for films based on a play, at least those that remain faithful to the source material. Fences is a Triple A movie if ever I saw one (that’s All About the Acting for those who don’t know) and features some of the best acting performances I’ve ever seen, especially the slam-dunk pairing of Denzel Washington and Viola Davis, reprising their roles from the Broadway revival.
Washington is both the director and star, playing Troy Maxson, a garbage collector who is easygoing while chewing the fat with his friend Bono (Stephen Henderson, who also appeared in Manchester By the Sea, by the way) but has a stubborn, controlling streak when it comes to his sons, whether it be the dissatisfaction with older son Lyons and his unrealistic musical aspirations or the hard-hearted opinion that young Cory has no chance at professional football. Viola Davis is his long-suffering wife Rose who balances Troy’s harder edges with sympathy and straightens him out when necessary. Both Washington and Davis give intense and incredibly nuanced performances, as does Jovan Adepo as Cory, and their interactions carry affection at first but also a high capacity for tension and verbal fireworks. While I was disappointed that Washington lost Best Actor, it’s about time Viola Davis won a well-deserved Oscar, considering she’s stood out even in small roles for years. It’s also the same role for which she won a Tony in 2010, and she’s now the only black actor to have an Emmy, Tony, and Oscar for acting categories.
While I’m not very familiar with playwright August Wilson’s Pittsburgh Cycle, a series of ten plays about African-American families throughout the 20th century, Fences isn’t my first exposure to his work. The Hallmark movie The Piano Lesson had a similar dialogue-driven narrative and style, but while that focused on matters of heritage and had a strangely supernatural ending, Fences is wholly realistic and tackles themes of fatherhood and responsibility with some truly complex characters. Troy, in particular, is both imperfect and admirable in his staunch adherence to personal responsibility; one of his first exchanges with Cory (the main one seen in all the trailers) sums him up perfectly, extolling his devotion to duty but putting that tough love ahead of anything like a caring familial relationship. When he admits to a reputation-shattering mistake on his part, he owns up to it but tries to defend his actions all the same, submitting to his responsibility with cold impartiality but not quite recognizing his own selfishness. He’s a proud man and a bitter one, thanks to racial prejudice and his own half-admitted past foibles that put his treatment of his sons in context.
Fences is a character study of flawed fatherhood, the kind that can mess up one’s childhood while shaping the person one becomes, for better or worse. Like its characters, it’s not perfect: the introduction of Troy’s mentally damaged brother (Mykelti Williamson) doesn’t flow as well as the rest, and I’m not sure it has the rewatch value of other play adaptations I love, such as Driving Miss Daisy. For the first half-hour, as Troy delivers folksy soliloquies that establish who he is, I wasn’t sold, but the emotional turns that follow confirm Fences as one of the great films of the year.
I never thought the whole #OscarsSoWhite controversy of the last two years was that egregious, but it might have seemed that the Academy overcompensated with the number of black nominees in 2016. Yet, with films like Fences, Hidden Figures, and Moonlight, it’s encouraging that these movies with and about African Americans are genuinely deserving rather than some token nominations to fill a societal quota. With its confined setting and focus on dialogue, Fences honors its roots as a play, and the exceptional acting distinguishes it as a first-class adaptation.
Best line: (Rose, to Cory about his father) “You can’t be nobody but who you are, Cory. That shadow wasn’t nothing but you growing into yourself. You either got to grow into it or cut it down to fit you. But that’s all you got to make life with. That’s all you got to measure yourself against that world out there. Your daddy wanted you to be everything he wasn’t…and at the same time he tried to make you into everything he was. I don’t know if he was right or wrong, but I do know he meant to do more good than he meant to do harm.”
Rhyme and Reason 