Oprah Winfrey Presents: When They See Us Now

The interview skills of Oprah was very mediocre on here, almost childish. All she kept doing is asking 11 year old type questions and saying mmhmm, ok. Didn't even really need the cast on their, only the real Central Park 5. Seeing them on stage, it becomes even more apparent of how the system messed them up mentally. Oprah interview gets a negative 8, Ava's presence a negative 4, the movie cast a negative 2, but the real individuals brings it up to a score of 4.

I know it is called a documentary, but you could also clearly call it just a talk show. That does not take anything away from the impact this might have. There are other shows that really put people on the spot and while doing a good or great thing (reuniting families or other nice stuff), work to get audience all sentimental and profit from that.

Oprah at least in this instance really cares for the 4 individuals who really had to go through quite a lot. It is amazing and heartbreaking hearing the people involved (at least the innocent ones, because the ones who pushed the negative agenda, will not speak out - even if they did, what would they say? Sorry? Would be a start I reckon, but don't hold your breath ...) and their journey and what they thought about the movie.

You also get to hear from the actors and how they prepared for their roles and what it means to them. Obviously it makes sense to watch the movie/series beforehand. Netflix actually made me watch this after the the 4 parter was over. Usually it asks you what you want to do next ... in this instance it just started after the other one ended. I'm not complaining mind you, because it is quite the complimentary piece ...

"based on a true story" has become Hollywood's license to lie. VICE did it to VP Cheney. This series does it to the trial that took place. It is fraught with inaccuracies that would be funny if they weren't so sad. The parents were present when the boys admitted to the crime. They boys had committed other crimes that night and committed other crimes after this trial. The prosecutor is shown as a crazy racist, couldn't' be further from the truth. She has since lost her job and her publisher because of the lies of this Netflix series. The police involved say this show is about 5% fact and 95% lies and spin. Oprah stirring the hate vote of her base coming up on a 2020 election. Sad failure.

I get it that reviewers are annoyed at the soft-ball questioning from Oprah. Move on. To listen to these five men, in their own words, is incredibly powerful and moving, largely because it's uncut and unedited. Only one of them is 'media ready', which makes it all the harder hitting. And the most powerful of all is the controlled invective toward Fairstein herself and the investigators she controlled. The system in America is built to capture the most vulnerable (and dangerous, to be fair) in society and keep them out of society, is the biggest takeaway. The lack of a second chance through institutionalised criminalisation removes hope. Without hope, what do you have?

When They See Us is not mere blaxploitation television. Neither is it another documentary that impartially shows the flaws of criminal justice system in America. It is a 4-part film recreating the case of the boys previously known as the Central Park Five. They were wrongfully accused and sent to prisons and juvenile detention centers for the sexual assault of a female jogger in 1989 in NYC. This interview, (When They See Us Now) presented by Oprah, is a great opportunity to prove how important it is that black creators work in the film industry telling our community stories. It invites the writer and director of the film, Ava DuVernay, the producers, the actors, and the men now known as The Exonerated Five: Kevin, Antron, Raymond, Yussef and Korey. While the 5 men are kind and brave enough to share the difficulties, trauma, resilience and redemption they all faced having lived a tremendous injustice and then being set free, the cast and crew of the film remind us how powerful the art of storytelling can be to create empathy and raise awareness. They tell us how they used their experience and their platform to achieve turning a real story of tragedy and overcoming caused by racism, a broken criminal justice system and mass incarceration into a form of art that draws attention to humanity, family, hopes, dreams, fear and subjectivity of people of color in America. Not only did they put together a beautiful piece of television; it is a call to action for us to become a better society.