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| Courtesy of The Weinstein Company |
Now
I can add Fruitvale Station to that list. The fact-based drama from rookie
filmmaker Ryan Coogler is so powerful, so heartbreaking that I was a total
wreck by the time the credits rolled. I’m glad I saw it, but I don’t envision a
scenario in which I’m ever emotionally equipped to repeat the experience.
In
the early hours of New Year’s Day 2009, Oscar Grant III was involved in an
altercation on a crowded Bay Area Rapid Transit train. When the train stopped
at Oakland’s Fruitvale Station, BART police officers detained several people,
including the 22-year-old Grant, on the platform. Then, while Grant was lying face
down and unarmed on the ground with his hands cuffed behind him, an officer
shot him in the back. He died a few hours later.
Dozens
of witnesses captured the event on their phones and video cameras, sparking
numerous protests, riots and criminal investigations. “Fruitvale Station” opens
with some of the actual footage. The film then jumps back 24 hours so audiences
can experience the last day of Grant’s life and witness the fateful choices he
made (both good and bad) that led him to that platform.
For
the most part, it’s an ordinary day. Grant (played by the phenomenal Michael B.
Jordan) takes his daughter (Ariana Neal) to preschool, drops his girlfriend (Melonie
Diaz) off at work and picks up a few things for his mother’s (Octavia Spencer) birthday
dinner later that evening. However, the film also focuses on the aspects of
Grant’s personality – his temper, his impulsiveness, etc. – that ultimately
lead to tragedy.
The
strength of Fruitvale Station is the result of two crucial decisions Coogler
makes. First, his screenplay depicts Grant as an actual person with strengths
and faults; he’s not a saint and he’s not a monster. Coogler realizes that all
of us have made decisions that could’ve resulted in horrific consequences under
the right circumstances. As such, he portrays the situation that led to Grant’s
death as a perfect storm of actions, reactions, misunderstandings, profiling and
flat-out terrible luck.
Secondly,
Coogler picked a brilliant actor to play Grant, even writing the script with
him in mind. Jordan – easily one of my favorite actors under the age of 30 – continues
to build a staggering résumé, topping his work in The Wire, Friday Night
Lights, Parenthood, and Chronicle with his poignant performance in Fruitvale
Station. In a perfect world, it would earn him an Oscar nomination. There are also
strong supporting performances from Diaz and Spencer (who also produced the
film, along with Forest Whitaker).
Fruitvale
Station isn’t exactly an enjoyable movie (though Jordan’s well-rounded depiction
of Grant offers plenty of laughs and warm moments), but it’s an important one.
If you’re of the mindset that film should be used to educate as well as
entertain, it’s a must-see. Just bring a giant box of tissues.
Fruitvale Station is rated
R for some violence, language throughout and some drug use.
Grade:
B+
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