FILM/ REVIEW
NICKEL BOYS
Rated PG-13
140 Minutes
Released August 30th at Telluride Film Fest, Limited Release December 13th for Oscar Consideration
Nickel Boys is based on the 2019 novel, The Nickel Boys, by American author Colson Whitehead, a story with roots in a true historical account of a reform school in Florida that operated for 111 years in the Jim Crow-era South. The book was described by critics as “a powerful tale of human perseverance, dignity and redemption.” It won the 2020 Pulitzer Prize for fiction, and it tells the story of “Elwood Curtis,” a black honor student in the deep South in 1962, who accepts a ride from a black man and then is arrested when it is revealed that the man has stolen the car they are riding in. Elwood is sent to a reform school for boys called the Nickel Academy.
This is an important film because of the story and because of the chances the director and cinematographer took in breaking the norms of style. They use unorthodox camera angles and at times the camera becomes the protagonist’s point of view. The story is intimately told. The landscapes are an integral part of the “painting” of this picture of the 1960s South, a painting seen from the characters’ eyes. Details of the narrative are revealed a bit at a time, you gradually get to know the characters and the story unfolds piece by piece. Only in the end do you realize the horrific significance of what you have been watching through the eyes of two teenagers captive in an abusive school. They accept the situation they have been dealt, with as it’s the only way they can survive mentally and physically.
Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, who beautifully plays Elwood’s grandmother, accidentally helped Director RaMell Ross and cinematographer Jomo Fray develop their camera style for the film. In a scene where she must give her grandson some devastating news, Fray instinctively looked away from her as he focused the camera on her. Ellis-Taylor took his hands and off-script said the words, “Elwood, look at me, son.” The words were so touching, they were kept in the film, and the style of using the camera as the protagonist’s point of view at crucial moments was also kept. The world as seen by the boys is discovered from their eyes by the camera.
This is the first major feature film for director Ross. His Oscar-nominated documentary feature, Hale County This Morning, This Evening (2018), was also groundbreaking in style, about Black life in a small Alabama town. Ross began his college career as a point guard for Georgetown University basketball, then studied at the Rhode Island School of Design and became an educator in film at Brown University. Before directing films, he established himself as a photographer.
Cinematographer Fray has worked on several feature films, and on the acclaimed 2021 mini-series The Underground Railroad. His goal is to build on experiential storytelling, films where the viewer can see and feel the story. He says that “movies let us walk a mile in someone else’s shoes…to have a brief moment to think about what it feels like to be another person, to experience another human life…”
The performances of the boys are riveting. Ethan Herisse as “Elwood,” has only a handful of short films and features on his resume. He has been working in film and TV since he was a child. Brandon Wilson, who is superb as Elwood’s more cynical best friend, “Turner,” has also been acting since childhood.
Nickel Boys is not a flashy, high-budget film. It’s a heartfelt look at a real story that most people probably think could never happen again in our country, but stories like this did happen and continue to happen. The movie leads us into a unique perception – visual, emotional, and critical. Whether you find the first-person use of the camera distracting or haunting will depend on your own experience. The film immerses us in the world of the intelligent and sensitive Elwood, and then gradually tears apart that world. The author of the novel did not hear about the real school and its horrific history until 2014. This makes me wonder how many more unmarked graves and wretched life experiences there may be that have been swept under the rug of history.
Kathryn Whitney Boole has spent most of her life in the entertainment industry, which has been the backdrop for remarkable adventures with extraordinary people. She is a Talent Manager with Studio Talent Group in Santa Monica. kboole@gmail.com
