Fruitvale Station

Based on the true story of one of the most heart wrenching instances of police brutality in American history, Fruitvale Station humanizes Oscar Grant, a victim of senseless police violence and racial profiling. This film does not paint him as a saint nor does it paint him as a crook, it shows him as a human being with many flaws. Michael B. Jordan gives an electrifying performance as Oscar Grant. He doesn't miss a single step and delivers a performance that has solidified him as a force to be reckoned with on screen. The film, as a whole, works but not for storytelling. This is a film that has great performances and that keeps it above average on many levels. If there was anyone else playing these roles, especially Jordan, I feel as if the film wouldn't pack as much of a punch. Ryan Coogler directs the hell out of his actors and does a fantastic job keeping pace. Running at just below an hour and a half, the film moves. It doesn't drag, it doesn't lack, it is a beautiful and moving portrayal of a man who was in the wrong place at the wrong time and the decisions that he made to put him at Fruitvale Station on that fateful night.

Overall, this is a film with powerhouse performances that needs to be seen. The 2013 awards season definitely has a contender in Fruitvale Station along with a soon-to-be Oscar nominated Michael B. Jordan.

Fruitvale Station (2013)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Exceptionally good drama from writer-director Ryan Coogler about Oscar Grant (Michael B. Jordan) and the various encounters his has with those around him. This fact-based drama gained major media attention when Grant was shot in the back by a police officer and this film really tries to be as real as possible in regards to its actual visual look. I'm not going to sit here and say this is a documentary because no film with a script and acting should be called a real document of any event. I'm sure things have been changed and altered for a dramatic effect so obviously one shouldn't come here expecting a documentary. With that said, there's no question that this is an exceptionally well-made movie and one that features some very good performances. I think the strongest thing that the film has going for it is the realistic style that Coogler creates. It's also as if we're really there on Grant's final day as a camera just follows him around from one location to the next. I thought this really helped create an environment that the viewer could connect with no matter what their race was. I think the film also does a good job showing where this 22-year-old man was in his life when all of this was going down and I'm sure many people won't approve of some of his choices but there's no question that the end result is something that's not only shocking but will leave you scratching your head as to why it happened. I think most people are going to know the story already but that really doesn't take away from the drama created by Coogler. In fact, we're shown what happens as the movie starts so we know how everything ends. Jordan turns in a terrific performance in the lead and I really like how he never tries to make Grant some sort of superhero or anything that he wasn't. I appreciate how the performance is just raw, on target and shows a human being struggling with life. The supporting performances are all good with Octavia Spencer and Melonie Diaz standing out. FRUITVALE STATION is depressing from the opening scene all the way through the opening credits so one shouldn't come here expecting something cheerful but it's certainly hard hitting.

Fruitvale Station begins with a disturbing phone video and ends with an intense recreation of the events surrounding that video, but in between, it's a little dull. The movie's main intent seems to be simply to show that a nice guy can get hit by disaster, so much of the film is just showing you the main character being a nice guy; planning his mom's birthday party (the mom's performance is a standout), talking to his kid. He's not portrayed as a saint - he has a quick temper and a bit of a past - but he's still basically a really nice guy.

This means that about two thirds of Fruitvale Station is a slice of life drama about a nice guy going about his normal day, which is really not that interesting. Most of the power of these scenes relies on that opening video, as you find yourself thinking, this might be the last time he sees her, this might be the last words they say to one another. And the movie does have a nice way of dropping in moments of menace, always signified by an effective low rumbling sound that brings your attention to key moments in a low-key way. But knowing something is coming, the movie seems to feel it doesn't need to make the events leading up to it especially interesting.

Things pick up as the movie heads towards its upsetting recreation of that video. From the time we see the first Bart station, the movie is quite engrossing. Even here though, there are issues, most prominently in a series of absurd coincidences that scream Hollywood set-up in a way unexpected in an indie film.

For a movie about an incident that triggered racial tensions, the film is surprisingly un-race based. That's admirably even-handed, but it may be one reason the film lacks passion; a good guy in the wrong place at the wrong time is not a subject for passion. Yet, the film lacks the sense of philosophic musing that might make the whole doomed nice-guy thing work.

It's almost a Hitchcockian exercise what Coogler does. Showing the climatic incident from the start, making his audience know exactly how the incident happened, where it's all leading to, leaving us during the entire movie in the expectation of when is it finally going to hit.

The tragedy deepens from the first message he sends until the birthday of his mother, as we see all the memories piled up on the fridge and the director frames the last time Oscar we'll be with his family, closing the second act and leading us to what we know to be the inevitable end.

And during the entire movie, the director leaves what seems to be hints for any explication that might make us understand what happened. The drugs, the blood, his anger. Almost defying us to take those as signs of what we would normally think if taken out of context.

And yet, the randomness of the moment is so much more impactful because there's no reason to it. Despite the fight that spikes it, all we see until then are signs of the redemption Oscar seeks, because of his daughter, and the abrupt end to all of it. "You shot me", the lasting words of a confused man, as we are by the end.

SPOILER: Fruitvale Station (2013) was written and directed by Ryan Coogler. Michael B. Jordan plays Oscar Grant III, an African-American man who was shot to death in the Fruitvale BART station on January 1st, 2009. The man who killed him was a police officer. The killer was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and served about two years in jail.

The film follows Grant through his last day of life--December 31st, 2008. We watch as Grant interacts with his common-law wife, their young daughter, friends, relatives and strangers. Grant comes across as a basically decent man--flawed, undependable, but clearly in love with his family, his partner. and their little girl.

It's hard to enjoy this film, because it's based on a truly tragic event, and we know how the story will end from the beginning of the movie. Still, Fruitvale Station is definitely worth seeing, because it reminds us that everyone's life is always at risk, but that the risks for young, African-American men are higher.

The movie will work well on DVD. It's definitely worth seeking out and seeing.