VERDICTA simply extraordinary film without
crashes, bangs and wallops but full of towering
performances delivered with intelligence,
power and heart.every harboured resentment; from his lagging
relationship with Rose to the dysfunctional
dynamic with youngest son — himself a
promising athlete — Cory (Adepo).
A frustrating, toxic combination of ego, pain
and injustice proves to be Troy’s undoing as both
a husband and a father, if not entirely as a man.
The complexity of characterisation is handled
deftly by Washington who takes him to the brink
of redemption and back again, never fully losing
the sympathies of the audience along the way.
It’s not an epic story, but it is a story told
epically. It’s one of the creaks and cracks and
tiny hairline fractures that deepen and expose
within a family, almost without notice, until
they’re beyond repair. But it’s also one with
a singularity of perspective, it being that of
a working-class African-American family in the
1950s. It’s a narrative that playwright August
Wilson — who receives the only screenplay credit
— mined beautifully,Fencesbeing one
of the ten plays in his ‘Century Cycle’ exploring
100 years of everyday family life in black
America. A narrative that arguably has more
resonance and relevance than ever.
It’s material that demands much of its
cast — almost all of whom starred in the Tony
Award-winning 2010 Broadway revival —
and while Washington holds the irst hour
exquisitely, Golden Globe winner Viola Davis,
initially tiptoeing the landmines that circle her
husband, ultimately moves towards the heart of
the story. Her passion and sheer power is never
greater than in the scene that follows a shock
confession from Troy, notably the seven words,
“What aboutmylife, what aboutme?”, delivered
with an emotional nuance and gut-punching
authenticity that most actors stretch for over
the course of two hours (if not two decades).
Outside of Washington and Davis, RussellHornsby izzes with resentment and bows with
need as Lyons, Troy’s son from a previous
relationship, and while the character of Gabe
(Williamson), Troy’s brother who suffered
a brain injury, doesn’t translate as fully or
smoothly to screen, it’s a relatively small
note in an otherwise lawless ilm. Denzel
Washington’s third directorial outing is
undoubtedly a work of meat and substance;
of ambition executed with precision. There
are no frills, no lights of fancy or footwork
to distract and relieve. Yes, you’ve got to work
hard for this ilm, but by god, it’s worth the
graft.TERRI WHITEClockwise from
left:Troy Maxson
(Denzel Washington)
and Jim Bono (Stephen
McKinley Henderson);
director Washington
watches playback with
director of photography
Charlotte Bruus
Christensen; Troy and
Rose Maxson (Viola
Davis) in their
Pittsburgh backyard.