To them in the moment, it's just an ordinary goodbye kiss (with Oscar promising to take her to Chuck E. Many times when Oscar does something, it's his "last." Especially poignant is the moment when he says goodnight to Tatiana before departing on the journey from which he won't return.
Because we in the audience are privy to how the story will end, every seemingly inconsequential action takes on a larger meaning. Then he drops off Tatiana at his sister-in-law's so he, his friends, and Sophina can head into San Francisco to see the fireworks.Ĭoogler infuses Fruitvale Station with an existential flavor. Since it's his mother's (Octavia Spencer) birthday, he and his family attend her party. He spends time with his girlfriend, Sophina (Melonie Diaz), and their four-year old daughter, Tatiana (Ariana Neal). He's trying to get a legitimate job to avoid having to return to selling drugs, an offense for which he is currently on parole. Until the final fifteen minutes, nothing dramatic happens to him.
#Fruitvale station verdict movie
The rest of the movie is a dramatization of the last day in the life of Oscar Grant (Michael B.
#Fruitvale station verdict trial
With the film hitting theaters in the wake of the George Zimmerman trial verdict, the questions Fruitvale Station asks about race have a heightened relevance than when the movie won both the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival.įruitvale Station opens with about a minute of actual footage of events that night on the platform.
By using a fly-on-the-wall approach, Coogler is able to tell his story in a straightforward style that gets the message across without seeming preachy. For the movie, Coogler has stayed close to the historical record, although some pundits have argued that he softens the rough edges of Grant's character to make the protagonist more sympathetic. The events, which occurred at the Fruitvale Station stop of the Bay Area's BART line, sparked international outrage when cellphone video showing the incident made its way on line. With Ryan Coogler, the fire burns for Oscar Grant, a 22-year old who was shot while in police custody during the early morning hours of New Year's Day 2009. Many times, the best feature debuts come from filmmakers who explore subjects about which they have a passion.
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