33/18
Young Girl Written, composed, and produced by Herschel Dwellingham
Story
Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Colson Whitehead, Nickel Boys tells the story of a strong friendship between two young African-American boys who go through a harrowing ordeal together at a Florida reform school. Nickel Boys director RaMell Ross shares 5 films that have influenced him as a cinephile and filmmaker.
Directed by Frank Lynch with permission from Grass Home Productions and Publishers (BMI)
A heartbreaking story about the abuse and mistreatment of young people of color at a reform school. It’s told solely from the subjective perspective of the main character and the schoolmate he befriends.
While I appreciate the ambition behind it, it unfortunately and somewhat paradoxically distances me from the main character
Some of the early scenes felt a bit artificial and forced with this technique, the dialogue never flowing naturally. Watching it at the Stockholm Film Festival without subtitles was also a challenge, as in some scenes the dialogue was very difficult to understand.
The events could be captured, but the details could not
Despite these objections to the stylistic choices, the story is still quite engaging, but overall it could have been even more with a more traditional narrative.
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