Strong Island

I wanted this to be The Thin Blue Line. It wasn't. That's a pretty high bar for a doc. I was probably being unfair. But I was disappointed. The families rage at the murder of their son/brother came through. But the story of what happened didn't. It just felt like rage. Understandable, but not what I want in a doc.

A Oscar nominated documentary from 2017. It entails the trek to Long Island by the Fords, an African American family & how during their stay, the elder son tragically lost his life during a verbal altercation w/a white individual. One night out, the son was driving his vehicle when a tow truck, w/its lights out, collided w/him prompting the owner to offer his body shop's services to make repairs. As weeks drove on & hostilities began to surface, the son made an ill-timed decision to confront the owner of the repair establishment leading to one of the employees to pull out .22 rifle & fire, killing the son instantly. We follow Yance Ford's journey in trying to glean some meaning by her brother's death especially from all accounts he was a thoughtful & respected man even intervening in another occasion apprehending a person who was the perpetrator of a shooting. The subject matter is heart wrenching but ultimately I have to judge the film by its construction & not by its importance which I think is evidenced by the unusual decision to begin a recap of a particular event near the doc's last 15 minutes making the film feel like its spinning its wheels as it were but if one can overlook this lapse in presentation then this potent story is another all too familiar modern discourse of our current racial polemics.

Racism is still big and not just in America. But with all the movements going on, there is a certain spotlight on it. Not to mention the current POTUS, who whatever you think of him, has divided and is dividing people as we speak (or rather as I write). But this isn't about Republicans or Democrats, it's about a tragic family story.

It may not strike a chord with everyone, but watching some of the interviews you don't have to feel bad if you choke at some of the descriptions and happenings. It's quite human and it's also human that certain things are subjective. When it comes to what someone else feels about a certain situation, there might be two different views on things. While someone jokingly playing with a knife may seem silly and innocent to some, some others may feel threatened and disrespected. So this is not an exact example from the movie, but you will know what I'm talking about if you watch the documentary ...

Okay, it would be a stretch to label this as underrated. It was nominated for a best documentary Oscar and received a good deal of acclaim from the critics at least. But on IMDB it's got a surprisingly low user score, as well as not nearly the number of votes it deserves. It's on Netflix and therefore likely buried under so many other true crime documentaries, but it's easily one of the better ones. It's maybe the best film of this sub-genre I've seen since the absolutely heartbreaking 'Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father' from 2008.

The emotional impact of Strong Island is similar to Dear Zachary. Maybe not in exactly the same manner, but it hits hard and seems explicitly designed to provoke strong emotional reactions from its audience. It's an achingly, almost uncomfortably personal story about director Yance Ford recounting the circumstances of his brother's death, way back in the early 1990s, interviewing the people who knew him best as well as effectively interviewing himself in parts. It was a risky move, becoming more than a narrator, though not in the occasionally grating way that Michael Moore or Morgan Spurlock often do in their documentaries. What Ford does here feels more honest, and much braver. Those other two often have an ironic, 'hip' sort of detachment to what they're talking about, but Ford doesn't hold back at all. It's confrontational, even at times to the audience, and maybe that's turned some people off. But I found myself respecting the decision. Ford talks about things in a way that 99.9% of people would be too afraid to, and when the subject matter is as serious as it is here, it's more than understandable.

It's not a fast-paced movie, but I wouldn't call it slow, which is a common and somewhat confusing criticism I've seen on here. The running time felt just about perfect- not too long, but not too brisk, and even if you find yourself restless here and there, it's worth it for the stunning last couple of scenes; particularly the very ending, which left me with a sizeable lump in my throat.

There isn't a whole lot to criticise. I loved how stark the first 20 or so minutes felt with no music of any kind, but eventually a fairly traditional score is utilised, and while the music isn't bad, I really liked the empty, gut-wrenching feeling that the music-free atmosphere conjured up. Maybe some people will call this documentary biased too, but that didn't bother me. It's as much an exploration of grief- and how a tragic event can tear apart a family- as it is a critique and expose of the flaws in the justice system. Even if you're not moved by the story of what happened to Ford's brother, or convinced that his killer wasn't acting in self-defence, the film is potentially even more compelling as a recounting of what happened to the people who knew him after his sudden death. If you're not at least a little saddened by learning of how his parents coped with his passing, or hearing about how close he was to achieving a dream job of his before his sudden death, then I'd be honestly shocked.

Strong Island is a sometimes slowly paced, often very challenging film, that may or may not be too confrontational or 'biased' for some people's tastes, but I thought it was excellently constructed and emotionally powerful. I want to recommend it to as many people as I can, because I think that while it isn't perfect, it says a great deal about so many things, and has a very bold and compelling way of doing so. And as a movie that's now on Netflix, you've really got nothing to lose beyond about 107 minutes, and I can all but guarantee that if you go in with an open mind, you'll find at least something to respect or be moved by within that runtime.

Firstly, I don't in any way purport to be a film reviewer - that said after watching this excellent film I was already feeling compelled to lodge a review for it - this was further amplified when I saw what I believe are extremely unfair negative reviews featuring prominently - and my strong suspicion is that these reviews are motivated by racism, hatred and complete ignorance. And I say this as a white middle aged man, who lives outside America but there is no way a fair minded person could watch this wonderful film and give it 1-4 stars - they've a clear axe to grind. e.g one of the reviews almost IMMEDIATELY flagging that the film maker is a transgender.....what does that have to do with ANYTHING?

The films arc is somewhat unconventional in that it focuses heavily on pulling the viewer inside the family - showing you who they were, how they came to be, what they went through to get where they were etc etc. It humanises them and allows them to be seen as vulnerable, imperfect people like the rest of us. I find it very odd that people see this as too slow paced or boring - I'm no soft touch but even I was moved and affected by the way this mosiac was painted.

The structure of the story telling sometimes seems a tad convoluted as it moves back and forth perhaps not giving as much info as one would like but it works well in the end. I'm again shocked some reviews feel the interviewees were acting (incredibly insulting - if anything I felt is was clearly raw emotional and absolutely genuine), the facial closeups are because the entire film is about the effect of the tragic loss of William on their family - nothing shows this more affectingly than the faces of the people closest to it. And finally that people had the poor judgement to accuse the interviewees of racist tones etc - is just outrageous & sadly like most of such comments far more telling about those who wrote them. I found the poise & balance in the story telling & interviewees pretty amazing given the events that occurred on top of what I am sure I can't really even slightly empathise with - that is being a person of colour in a deeply racist country.

Although it'd have been easy to give it a 10 to 'balance out' what I feel are stupidly low scores motivated by numerous hatreds, I've tried to be true and given it an 8. I agree the editing isn't as good as it could be in a few minor spots, I found the very upbeat closing credit music choice quite jarring given the rather somber conclusion (though felt it might have had personal relevance to the maker/family) and agree that a bit more Errol Morris type expert interviews on the self defence laws, interpretation of the autopsy etc would have been a terrific counter to the phenomenal emotional depth of the film.

I won't include any spoilers but it truly is a superb film - I watch a lot of feature docus and whilst i wouldn't say this is the best I've seen it's several hours very well invested if you're open to empathising with others and can put prejudices and preconceptions aside (which I believe several other reviewers clearly have not been able to do). I'm shocked it's currently only got a ~6.5 rating....it's a 8-9 IMHO and my wife felt the same way. I hope to see more from the filmmaker in the future and thank him for sharing this deeply personal story with the world - I believe it's important and extremely thought provoking both socially and as a person.