Fences (2016)

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

Few movies make as little effort to disguise their stage origins as Fences. Director/Star Denzel seems to have no interest in turning Fences into a movie; he just wants to present the play on film. This is offputting at first, but as the movie proceeds the strength of its performances and the powerful words pull you in.Denzel plays a bitter, colorful guy so obsessed with the harm the world has done to him that he is blind to the harm he's done to others. It is an excellent, powerful performance; he is awful, yet you can see the charisma that keeps him from, at least at first, repelling the world.I had heard a lot about Viola Davis' award-winning performance, but her early scenes aren't all that impressive, perhaps because she doesn't have much to do. As the drama ramps up though, her performance becomes mesmerizing; a confrontation with Denzel is so searing one expects the film to melt.The rest of the cast is excellent, especially Mykelti Williamson as Gabriel.This sat in my queue for a long time, because I don't really have the interest in intense dramas I had in my younger days. But it is a deep and remarkably compelling drama well worth watching.Still, I feel a director more interested in making a movie than a filmed play would have been preferable.

Troy is a middle-aged garbage collector in 1950s Pittsburgh. Though he gets some enjoyment from life, he is rather bitter about his past, and brings that along into his relationship with his teenage son Cory, with wife Rose doing her best to mediate between them. Life isn't wonderful, but it could get worse... The story in this film is set up in the trailer, but there is a development at the two-thirds point which comes as a surprise, and which drives developments up to the end of the film.Having said that, the plot is secondary: this film is primarily a character study. As the film progresses, we learn how Troy became the man he is: cognisant of his responsibilities as a family man, loving, bullying, kind, controlling, narrow-minded and long-sighted - in short, full of the contradictions which make every one of us a human being.Denzel Washington, directing and starring in the film version of the play which he and co-star Viola Davis played successfully on Broadway, controls this film both behind and in front of the camera. It is a brilliant performance. By the time this film is finished, you love this man and despise him at the same time, attitudes which are shared by his son Cory.But every member of the cast is exemplary. Viola Davis deserved her Oscar nomination, but I greatly like Mykelti Williamson, playing a part which is some distance from his usual range.My sole reservation is that the film is somewhat depressing: despite his positive notes, Troy isn't a very likeable man, and he carries a great deal of not very likeable baggage with him. But that is not the point of this story, it IS this story. And it's a story which is worth seeing for the performances alone.

This is the first review I have ever written on IMDB; and quite frankly I only felt the need to write it to express how poor this film is in general.There are some excellent pieces of acting that do need to be highlighted, Denzel Washington as always puts on a fantastic performance. Though with all the good of the performances there is no character progression (maybe that's the point to show the stagnation of the characters, but either way it wasn't entertaining). There is a lot of still scenes; one person talking to another. Again this may have been the idea to show the lack of progress the characters are making in life, and from a directors point of view if you were to analyse the film it would be quite interesting; but from an out and out entertainment point of view it made the film slow, boring and really ruined any chance of becoming engrossed in what you were watching.

It's very difficult to manage expectations when the talent on and off screen is immeasurable. Washington acting and directing, Davis, Wilson's original drafted screenplay and loyally abiding to Wilson's last wishes by utilising an all African-American cast. For the most part, this drama succeeds. An old-school family's trust is broken when the husband admits to being unfaithful. What follows is an almost Shakespearean American drama that is fuelled by values and traditions. On paper, these characters are formidable forces. Proud individuals who hold the utmost respect for themselves, yet their lives are far from the idyllic dreams that they once had. The son has the same aspirations as the father, yet due to his failed ventures he refuses to let his son follow the same doomed path. Insinuating that racism played a fundamental role to his demise, he attempts to manipulate his son into thinking the same. It's a harsh family environment where the members are constantly treading carefully, fortunately Wilson's screenplay conveys the tension eloquently. The first act is a tidal wave of dialogue that allows Washington and Davis to establish their prominence. The latter being incredible, particularly during the snot-filled scene where she exclaims "Well I've been standing here with you!". Immediately I was stricken with goosebumps. Washington's directing style was simple as he ensures the screenplay is at the forefront. However, the major issue I have with this unabridged conversion of the play is that it has no cinematic style. It's as if I was watching the play, yet because Washington attempted to adapt this cinematically he consequently loses the theatrical intensity. Thus I struggled to remain compelled through certain scenes. So much dialogue and acting that it just doesn't settle, it lacked that emotional involvement. Fences is an incredibly intimidating film, wonderfully written and acted but occasionally disinteresting. I just wanted something more from this...