Fences
Dir: Denzel Washington
Starring: Denzel Washington, Viola Davis, Mykelti Williamson, Jovan
Adepo, Russell Hornsby, and Stephen McKinley Henderson
American playwright August Wilson, an exceptionally talented
author, wrote a character that you could describe as one of these “great
conversationalists” in a play called “Fences”. The character, Troy Maxson, is a
charismatic man with strong ideas and perceptions about the world around him
and the world that has and will shape his future. Troy is a difficult character
to like, but he is undeniably riveting to listen to.
Denzel Washington, reprising the role he established in the
stage adaptation a few years ago, plays Troy Maxson. However, Mr. Washington is
doing more than just acting, he also directed this film. Also reprising her
role from the play is Viola Davis, playing a beautiful and thoughtful woman,
mother, wife who loves her family and makes Troy a better man than he actually
is. “Fences” is a film that operates within set boundaries, much like its title
insinuates, and it places the viewer in the middle of a family dynamic that
lumbers and crumbles under the stress of past woes, selfish decisions, and the
pursuit for the happiness that motivates the American dream.
We are introduced to Troy Maxson (Denzel Washington), waxing
and jabbing with his best friend Bono (Stephen McKinley Henderson) about their
job as sanitation workers, their lives as husbands and fathers, and the past
that has solidified their relationship with such a fierce bond that underneath
every mean spirited joke and personal stab you can feel the kind of love that
comes with shared experiences both good and bad. Troy’s wife Rose (Viola Davis)
is the glue that holds her family together, a woman who adores her husband
amidst the knowledge that everything in their relationship, and with their
family, is not the best that it could be.
“Fences” was adapted from a play, but Mr. Washington doesn’t
allow the constraints within that structure to keep him from expanding the
limits. By no means does the film have flashy photography or offer technical
flare; instead Mr. Washington establishes a parameter, the inside of the house,
the confines of the backyard, the sidewalks and road of the street Troy walks home
on. Within these boundaries Mr. Washington displays the American dream for a
family that experienced the social injustices that tarnished their pursuit of
that dream. Troy is still weary and angry from these experiences, he was a
baseball player that peaked before Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier and
a sanitation worker who believes that being a driver is meant for people of a
different color than him. While these experiences are never shown, Troy
discusses them with such intricacy and passion that you can see these scenes
formulate from his words. Still, this harsh mentality about the world saturates
every decision he makes with his family. His youngest son Cory (Jovan Adepo),
who plays football and is vying for scholarship to play in college, is
challenged on numerous occasions in a similar fashion as when Troy discusses
how bad a baseball player Jackie Robinson was. It starts as part tough love but
moves into something that feels like bullying. Troy’s other son Lyon (Russell
Hornsby), who is a struggling musician, is also belittled for wanting to borrow
money and then later in the film denied the opportunity to pay his father back
because of Troy’s pride. It’s within these moments with family where we begin
to see the charismatic talker, who boasts about fighting the devil and hitting
homeruns, show his true colors. In a heartbreaking scene and performance from
Viola Davis, Rose confronts her husband who has just boasted about another
woman, complained about his home life, and offered regrets about why the world
has passed him by. Through a flow of tears, she asks him the question “What
about my life, what about my dreams?” and Troy has no response.
“Fences” is never an easy film, it asks complicated
questions and insists that you try and see the world throw the eyes of the
characters. This sometimes offers valuable insight, like when Troy discusses
why he “likes” his son, and at other times confuses, like when Rose
complaisantly accepts an unimaginable responsibility because of Troy’s
selfishness. Still, great characters should make these aspects of life
difficult to understand, it’s easy to say that we would respond differently but
it’s never that easy in the moment. That’s the accomplishment that Mr.
Washington achieves in “Fences”, making the murky and thorny choices these
characters make resonate so emotionally long after the film ends.
Monte’s Rating
4.00 out of 5.00
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