Fences - directed by Denzel Washington
This film marks Denzel Washington's third as director.
In addition he is the lead actor and if this seems like he has created a massive workload for himself then at least the material is very familiar to him.
He starred in the 2010 Broadway play and has been a longtime fan of the 1987 James Earl Jones starring production.
Playwright August Wilson died in 2005 but had already written the screenplay for this filmed version.
In fact it was Wilson's insistence that the filmed version be directed by a black director that caused several attempts at making this film to fall through.
And now finally of course with Washington in the director's chair we have a movie.
"Fences" concerns Troy (Washington) a Pennsylvania sanitation worker married to Rose (Davis).
Troy is bitter because as a younger man his baseball career in the Negro Leagues never transitioned to the major leagues.
Age was the reason given but Troy feels that colour was probably the real issue.
Regardless he now finds himself middle aged with a mentally handicapped brother ("Heat" and "Forrest Gump" actor Mykelti Williamson) and a young son who is keen on a football scholarship.
Tension builds as Troy makes his disapproval known.
In the middle of all this are Troy's son Lyons from a previous relationship and Troy's best friend Bono (Stephen Henderson).
There are three main reveals concerning Troy during this film and whilst at least one of them is probably not really a spoiler I will refrain from describing any of them as I think the discovery for the viewer is important.
Troy is a character that I found initially quite likeable thanks to Washington's easy charm but the more I learned the more I started to dislike him.
In interviews Washington has rejected 'angry' as a description for the character preferring 'frustrated' but for me he was bitter, resentful and yes- angry.
It doesn't help that Rose - played in typically amazing fashion by Davis- is a lovely human being.
She is hard working, caring, selfless and kind.
Clearly she loves Troy greatly and these things all make it harder and harder to like him as the reveals come rolling in.
His treatment of his son might be considered tough love by some but for me it was simple borderline abuse.... often without the 'borderline'.
It is often a tough film to watch and not always because of the tensions and the dramas.
There is a concern with any theatre production turned into a film that because the two mediums have different styles and restrictions that the filmed version could be 'stagey'.
This is definitely a problem with "Fences".
It isn't just the limited number of locations -which can be counted on one hand- it is the endless talkiness.
Troy in particular goes off on very lengthy monologues.
Other characters stand back and watch him in the way that I am used to seeing actors do at the edge of a stage while the attention is off them.
As director Washington doesn't really use the advantage that film gives him.
The camera is largely immobile and he utilises pretty standard setups for the dialogues scenes which pretty much accounts for all of the scenes.
It is possibly an unfair comparison but when you look at how Danny Boyle staged the similarly 'stagey' "Steve Jobs" and made it dynamic, exciting and fast paced "Fences" looks for the most part like someone strategically placed half a dozen cameras and invited a theatre company to stage the production in front of them.
I was left with an empty feeling as the film ended.
The question 'is that it?' came to mind.
I was mystified as to the point of the film and puzzled by its length.
At almost two and a quarter hours this is a hard slog.
The pacing is sluggish for the first hour and throws all of the real drama into the final thirty minutes.
There is absolutely no doubt that the acting is top notch from all involved but it isn't enough to maintain interest.
"Fences" has garnered a lot of acclaim but as is often the case with films favoured by critics I feel that they become untouchable once a certain number of raves have been delivered.
I appreciated the performances and admire Washington's double duty as actor and director but for me this was flat and forgettable.
RATING: 70 / 100
CONCLUSION: Superbly acted it may be but for me "Fences" never became more than a filmed stage play and left me with an empty, unsatisfied feeling.
Starring: Denzel Washington, Viola Davis, Stephen Henderson, Jovan Adepo, Mykelti Williamson, Russell Hornsby, Saniyya Sidney, Christopher Mele, Lesley Boone, Jason Silvis
Screenplay: August Wilson (based on his play)
Music Score by: Marcelo Zarvos
Cinematography: Charlotte Bruus Christensen
Edited by: Hughes Winborne
Running Time: 139 minutes
Language: English
Rated: PG - Profanity & sexual references
Running Time: 139 minutes
Language: English
Rated: PG - Profanity & sexual references
In addition he is the lead actor and if this seems like he has created a massive workload for himself then at least the material is very familiar to him.
He starred in the 2010 Broadway play and has been a longtime fan of the 1987 James Earl Jones starring production.
Playwright August Wilson died in 2005 but had already written the screenplay for this filmed version.
In fact it was Wilson's insistence that the filmed version be directed by a black director that caused several attempts at making this film to fall through.
And now finally of course with Washington in the director's chair we have a movie.
"Fences" concerns Troy (Washington) a Pennsylvania sanitation worker married to Rose (Davis).
Troy is bitter because as a younger man his baseball career in the Negro Leagues never transitioned to the major leagues.
Age was the reason given but Troy feels that colour was probably the real issue.
Regardless he now finds himself middle aged with a mentally handicapped brother ("Heat" and "Forrest Gump" actor Mykelti Williamson) and a young son who is keen on a football scholarship.
Tension builds as Troy makes his disapproval known.
In the middle of all this are Troy's son Lyons from a previous relationship and Troy's best friend Bono (Stephen Henderson).
There are three main reveals concerning Troy during this film and whilst at least one of them is probably not really a spoiler I will refrain from describing any of them as I think the discovery for the viewer is important.
Troy is a character that I found initially quite likeable thanks to Washington's easy charm but the more I learned the more I started to dislike him.
In interviews Washington has rejected 'angry' as a description for the character preferring 'frustrated' but for me he was bitter, resentful and yes- angry.
 |
| Troy and Bono (left) and Cory with Troy |
She is hard working, caring, selfless and kind.
Clearly she loves Troy greatly and these things all make it harder and harder to like him as the reveals come rolling in.
His treatment of his son might be considered tough love by some but for me it was simple borderline abuse.... often without the 'borderline'.
It is often a tough film to watch and not always because of the tensions and the dramas.
There is a concern with any theatre production turned into a film that because the two mediums have different styles and restrictions that the filmed version could be 'stagey'.
This is definitely a problem with "Fences".
It isn't just the limited number of locations -which can be counted on one hand- it is the endless talkiness.
Troy in particular goes off on very lengthy monologues.
Other characters stand back and watch him in the way that I am used to seeing actors do at the edge of a stage while the attention is off them.
As director Washington doesn't really use the advantage that film gives him.
The camera is largely immobile and he utilises pretty standard setups for the dialogues scenes which pretty much accounts for all of the scenes.
It is possibly an unfair comparison but when you look at how Danny Boyle staged the similarly 'stagey' "Steve Jobs" and made it dynamic, exciting and fast paced "Fences" looks for the most part like someone strategically placed half a dozen cameras and invited a theatre company to stage the production in front of them.
 |
| Viola Davis's performance stands tall but there is fine support from Mykelti Williamson (centre) |
The question 'is that it?' came to mind.
I was mystified as to the point of the film and puzzled by its length.
At almost two and a quarter hours this is a hard slog.
The pacing is sluggish for the first hour and throws all of the real drama into the final thirty minutes.
There is absolutely no doubt that the acting is top notch from all involved but it isn't enough to maintain interest.
"Fences" has garnered a lot of acclaim but as is often the case with films favoured by critics I feel that they become untouchable once a certain number of raves have been delivered.
I appreciated the performances and admire Washington's double duty as actor and director but for me this was flat and forgettable.
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