Fences

Fences

Starring Denzel Washington, Viola Davis, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Jovan Adepo

Directed by Denzel Washington

The Story:
In 1950s Pittsburgh, Troy Maxson (Denzel Washington) works at a waste collection factory with his lifelong friend Bono (Stephen McKinley Henderson), lives with his adoring, longsuffering wife Rose (Viola Davis) and teenage son Cory (Jovan Adepo), and on every Friday payday is visited by his eldest son from another woman Lyons (Russell Honrsby), who always asks for money.  Troy lives in a modest house thanks to his brother Gabriel (Mykelti Wiliamson), who was injured in the War and suffered permanent brain damage, but has since moved out to show his independence.

Troy enjoys telling stories, most of which involve him spending time in prison, playing baseball for the Negro Leagues, being denied for Major League Baseball due to his race (or possibly his age), and wrestling with the Grim Reaper while he battled pneumonia.  All the while Rose maintains a steady grounding on Troy, and informs him that Cory is playing football and is being scouted for college.  Troy is vehemently against this and forbids Cory from playing, and he tells his father it's because he's afraid he'll become a better sports player than him.

Rose asks Troy to build a fence around the home, and Troy forces Cory to help him for punishment for not doing his chores.  As the film progresses Troy reveals a family-shattering secret that threatens to ruin the lives of everyone he loves.

The Synopsis:
"Fences" is a Pulitzer Prize winning Broadway play written by August Wilson, and features Denzel Washington, Vila Davis, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Russell Hornsby and Mykelti Williamson.  Denzel Washington had a desire to translate the play to the big screen, and the entire cast (with the addition of newcomer Jovan Adepo) joined in the adventure.  The result is a film that's obviously based off a play, and serves as a powerful analogy of the family dynamic in any decade.

One thing that you notice when you see the film is its closed sets, which is something you often find in a movie based off a play.  Besides the backyard, the living room and kitchen, there's not a whole lot of traveling done in the film, and it swells from the broad backyard to the more claustrophobic inside.  Another thing you notice is the long soliloquies from the actors, which is another sign of a movie that's based off a play.  This is a talking movie, and there's hardly any action in it.  In lesser hands, it could've fell flat, but with a stellar cast, it soars above the mundane and resonates with you long after it ends.

You can tell Denzel Washington puts his heart and soul into this production, serving not just as its lead actor but director as well.  He has a deep passion for the play, and worked tirelessly to translate it to the big screen.  While I never saw the play, I say he did a stellar job, because it was moving, powerful and poignant in the smallest details, as well as the swelling overriding allegories the film - especially the fence - entails.

"Some people build fences to keep people out, other people build fences to keep people in."

Washington plays Troy, a man who has been hardened by the ways of the world and sees the world as a tough, unforgiving place.  He reminisces about playing baseball, and when his son wants to follow in his father's footsteps, he forbids it - either because he knows it'd be too big of a climb for him, or because he's afraid he'll be out shined, we don't know.  This drives a deep wedge between father and son, and serves as a metaphorical fence that Troy puts up between himself and Cory; he's building a fence to keep Cory out.  The two butt heads and, in one of the film's final moments, get into a heated, volatile confrontation. 

While Washington commands the screen and gives another stellar performance, it's the highly underrated Viola Davis who shines as Rose, a woman who somehow still loves Troy despite his many, many faults and her strong desire to keep the family intact, once again metaphorically building fences around the family to keep them safe; she's building a fence to keep her family in.  Yet the world is not a safe place, and Troy is not a safe man, and as her world crumbles around her, she finally lashes out in an unforgettable scene that's proof she is one of today's most iconic, talented actresses and will hopefully be awarded with Oscar gold later this year.  Even though she's going for the Supporting Actress category, she is, in every sense of the word, a leading lady.

While the film doesn't affect the world like other films, "Fences" is a deeply personal, emotional family drama that resonates through the centuries and touches the heart in a way that most films don't, due to a powerful script, amazing actors and deeply powerful set pieces. 

The Summary:
A story as simple as any you've heard, "Fences" still holds a powerful sway on the viewer thanks to a top-notch script and more-than-capable actors.

The Score: A