December 13, 2024
FILM: NICKEL BOYS
DIRECTED BY: RAMELL ROSS
STARRING: ETHAN HERISSE, BRANDON WILSON, AUNJANUE ELLIS-TAYLOR
RATING: 3 ½ out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
There’s a technique that various directors have attempted over the last century of cinema that Nickel Boys uses in some astonishing ways. It’s called the subjective point of view, which basically means that we are seeing from the perspective of a character. The camera is located in the position of that character’s eyes. An early famous example of it was Robert Montgomery’s The Lady in the Lake from 1946. More recently, artist/director Julian Schnabel captured a paralyzed man’s perspective in the brilliant 2007 film The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. The choice of this technique by RaMell Ross for Nickel Boys is a curious one since the film is based on a Pulitzer Prize winning novel of the same name. In theory, this should mean that the text is more important than any flashy camera technique being used. During the opening scenes, I wondered if the point of view would detract from the meat of the story. (I hadn’t read the book.) However, what Ross does is create an extremely artful piece of work that takes us into not one but three different perspectives.
The film and book are loosely based on actual events. They concern Elwood, played by Ethan Herisse, a Black teenager from the south who plans to attend a technical school in Florida. On his way, an unfortunate incident occurs which lands him at the Nickel Academy that is basically a segregated prison. There, Elwood meets Turner, played by Brandon Wilson, and the two strike up a friendship that gets them through some of the rough treatment they receive from the higher ups.
The events take place in the 1960s just as the Civil Rights Movement is becoming more prominent and accepted in American culture. We see Dr. Martin Luther King on television, suggesting there is hope for Blacks and other marginalized people. Unfortunately, the Nickel Academy doesn’t seem to be a proponent of the movement and many Black men are killed and buried in unmarked graves on its grounds.
What’s interesting then is how this plays out using these camera perspectives. The opening scenes are all from Elwood’s point of view. We see how his Nana, played by Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, shows him love and comfort. The camera is often quite up close to her and other characters to make us feel the intimacy in their connections. Once Elwood is imprisoned we often see him looking down, giving us shots of shoes and the solid ground below. The shots here, and throughout the film, are artfully edited in an almost impressionistic style.
Then, a scene in a lunchroom is suddenly re-played from the perspective of Turner. It’s a particularly startling moment suggesting that this is now both of their stories. From a filmmaking perspective, it is pretty daring to employ this shift but it ultimately works well allowing us to finally see Elwood’s face. There were a few reflections before this but now we can see him how Turner sees him.
We then see a slightly different perspective from behind a character, played by Daveed Diggs. It’s a curious shift since the others were shot from a more direct point of view. The narrative jumps from his perspective over several decades and we eventually see him doing computer research about found bodies in Florida.
The entire film makes many bold choices such as these that make it the true work of a visionary director. Some may find it gimmicky and yes, perhaps a little distracting from the complex text but there is nothing else in modern cinema that quite matches this kind of visual cinematic artistry.
Nickel Boys is destined to be studied for years. Before that it will likely be a major Oscar-contender. It opens this week in New York and will then be rolled out to other cities in the weeks to come.
FILM: NICKEL BOYS
DIRECTED BY: RAMELL ROSS
STARRING: ETHAN HERISSE, BRANDON WILSON, AUNJANUE ELLIS-TAYLOR
RATING: 3 ½ out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
There’s a technique that various directors have attempted over the last century of cinema that Nickel Boys uses in some astonishing ways. It’s called the subjective point of view, which basically means that we are seeing from the perspective of a character. The camera is located in the position of that character’s eyes. An early famous example of it was Robert Montgomery’s The Lady in the Lake from 1946. More recently, artist/director Julian Schnabel captured a paralyzed man’s perspective in the brilliant 2007 film The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. The choice of this technique by RaMell Ross for Nickel Boys is a curious one since the film is based on a Pulitzer Prize winning novel of the same name. In theory, this should mean that the text is more important than any flashy camera technique being used. During the opening scenes, I wondered if the point of view would detract from the meat of the story. (I hadn’t read the book.) However, what Ross does is create an extremely artful piece of work that takes us into not one but three different perspectives.
The film and book are loosely based on actual events. They concern Elwood, played by Ethan Herisse, a Black teenager from the south who plans to attend a technical school in Florida. On his way, an unfortunate incident occurs which lands him at the Nickel Academy that is basically a segregated prison. There, Elwood meets Turner, played by Brandon Wilson, and the two strike up a friendship that gets them through some of the rough treatment they receive from the higher ups.
The events take place in the 1960s just as the Civil Rights Movement is becoming more prominent and accepted in American culture. We see Dr. Martin Luther King on television, suggesting there is hope for Blacks and other marginalized people. Unfortunately, the Nickel Academy doesn’t seem to be a proponent of the movement and many Black men are killed and buried in unmarked graves on its grounds.
What’s interesting then is how this plays out using these camera perspectives. The opening scenes are all from Elwood’s point of view. We see how his Nana, played by Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, shows him love and comfort. The camera is often quite up close to her and other characters to make us feel the intimacy in their connections. Once Elwood is imprisoned we often see him looking down, giving us shots of shoes and the solid ground below. The shots here, and throughout the film, are artfully edited in an almost impressionistic style.
Then, a scene in a lunchroom is suddenly re-played from the perspective of Turner. It’s a particularly startling moment suggesting that this is now both of their stories. From a filmmaking perspective, it is pretty daring to employ this shift but it ultimately works well allowing us to finally see Elwood’s face. There were a few reflections before this but now we can see him how Turner sees him.
We then see a slightly different perspective from behind a character, played by Daveed Diggs. It’s a curious shift since the others were shot from a more direct point of view. The narrative jumps from his perspective over several decades and we eventually see him doing computer research about found bodies in Florida.
The entire film makes many bold choices such as these that make it the true work of a visionary director. Some may find it gimmicky and yes, perhaps a little distracting from the complex text but there is nothing else in modern cinema that quite matches this kind of visual cinematic artistry.
Nickel Boys is destined to be studied for years. Before that it will likely be a major Oscar-contender. It opens this week in New York and will then be rolled out to other cities in the weeks to come.