For years, the general public knew Oscar Grant as the young African American man who appeared in a cell phone video in which he was shot at point blank range by a transit officer standing over him while laying handcuffed and face down on the ground.
“Fruitvale Station” takes the public beyond Grant’s controversial death on New Year’s Day 2009. The independent drama reenacts the last 24 hours leading up to the death of the 22-year-old Oakland resident, capturing his turbulent past, yet placing a deeper focus on his hopes and aspirations as a father, boyfriend and son.
Written and directed by 27-year-old Bay Area native, Ryan Coogler, the film won the Grand Jury Prize for dramatic feature and the Audience Award for U.S. dramatic film at this year’s Sundance Film Festival.
The opening cell phone footage of Grant’s death sets the tone of the entire film, to then abruptly rewind in time to a day earlier. Grant and his girlfriend Sophina (Melonie Diaz) are in bed as he reassures her of his love and loyalty despite previously cheating on her. After a day of self-reflection and time with family, Grant and Sophina take BART to San Francisco with friends to bring in the New Year.
Brief written summaries of the fatal shooting and the trial outcome are displayed at the beginning and at the end of film, so that viewers with no familiarity of Grant’s story leave understanding the events that transpired and their outcomes.
Lead actor Michael B. Jordan, known for his role in “The Wire,” ‘’Friday Night Lights” and “Chronicle,” demonstrates his versatility as an actor by taking on Grant’s complex character; a charismatic, empathetic individual—lacking direction and at times ill-tempered.
Academy Award winning actress Octavia Spencer plays Grant’s mother, delivering a heartfelt performance and effectively transmitting a mother’s love and heartbreak.
The sequence of events throughout Grant’s day is carefully laid out to bring humanity to his character, avoiding to overly victimize him as an unemployed, low-income, African American male. It just tells Grant’s story, leaving it up to the audience to reflect on the underlying issues of race and class.
First time director Coogler overly emphasizes Grant’s empathetic characteristics. In a dramatic scene Grant picks up a dog that has been hit by a car; he attempts to calm the dog as it dies in his arms. It may be interpreted as foreshadowing the tragic events to come, but it proves unnecessary, since the audience’s empathy for Grant’s character was already established early on.
The movie is filmed as if someone followed Grant with a handheld camera, which proved to be a good approach to avoid over-glamorizing the film and to fulfil its look as a docudrama.
It conveys the feeling of injustice that remains present in the Bay Area since the fatal shooting. Bay Area residents can expect to see the familiar streets of Oakland, Hayward and San Francisco, including areas around the Fruitvale Station.
As a true Bay Area native, Coogler successfully enhances the urban feel by incorporating popular songs by Bay Area rappers Mistah F.A.B., The Jacka and Cellski, while featuring Mac Dre’s “Feelin’ Myself,” an unofficial Bay Area anthem.
“Fruitvale Station” will take viewers on an emotional rollercoaster up until its inevitable tragic ending. Coincidentally, the film was released this past weekend as the nation faces parallel issues related to the Zimmerman case, also involving the fatal shooting of a young African American male, Trayvon Martin.
“Fruitvale Station” is now playing in San Francisco at AMC Metreon Theater, 101 4th St.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KgezmmaFg-s