Film “Nickel Boys”
What’s going on with this film?
Screened the film “Nickel Boys” based on the tragedy that happened at the brutal Dozier juvenile reform school in Marianna, Florida. Students at the 1,400-acre institution, originally known as the Florida State Reform School, were chained to walls and subjected to extraordinarily harsh beatings, sexual assault and Black boys lived in one part of campus, White boys in another. By June 2011, the school finally shut down. But investigators have found dozens of unmarked graves on the property in recent years.
In the film it’s called Nickel Academy instead of Dozier. Synopsis: Elwood Curtis’ college dreams are shattered when he’s sentenced to Nickel Academy, a brutal reformatory in the Jim Crow South. Clinging to his optimistic worldview, Elwood strikes up a friendship with Turner, a fellow Black teen who dispenses fundamental tips for survival.
While critics have praised “Nickel Boys”, I believe much of this acclaim stems from the film being extremely diluted to appeal to “specific” audiences, “cough”…White audience. In the Q&A following the screening, director RaMell Ross stated that he avoided depicting the brutality of the story, as he felt audiences already knew what happened. However, this decision misses a crucial point: many viewers are unfamiliar with this heinous historical tragedy. For decades, stories of systemic tragedies and suffering inflicted upon Black people have been marginalized or erased. By omitting these critical details, the film left the audience puzzled and disconnected.
The lack of backstory is a significant flaw. How do you tell a story about a heinous chapter in history without providing context? Instead, the film leaned on historical images and collages that were unrelated to the narrative. Try to figure out the reasoning for that faux pas. Furthermore, the film lacked a coherent storyline, as a matter of fact, there wasn’t very much of a storyline, “Nickel Boys” has so many disjointed scenes, it failed to connect or advance the plot in a meaningful way.
Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, who is a remarkable actress, shared during the Q&A that she struggled to connect with her character, Hattie, because she was acting in isolation, performing to a camera rather than interacting with other actors. This disconnect translated on screen, underscoring the much deeper issues in the directing and storytelling process.
The cinematography was equally perplexing. The DP relied on bizarre close-ups; shots of a toaster, feet, and lower bodies that served no narrative purpose. The frequent, jarring time jumps only compounded the confusion, bouncing between the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and the present without clarity or cohesion.
By the end of the film, the story was left frustratingly ambiguous. While it’s clear someone was shot, the identity of the victim…whether it was Turner, Ellwood, or another character, remained unclear due to yet another time jump. This lack of resolution left the audience unsatisfied.
Ultimately, “Nickel Boys” felt more like an experimental documentary than a feature film. RaMell Ross, known for his documentary work, seemed to struggle with transitioning to narrative storytelling. The film suffered from weak editing, awkward cinematography, lackluster direction, and an odd musical score.
That said, the performances by Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor (Hattie, Ellwood’s grandmother)), Brandon Wilson (Turner), and Ethan Herisse (Ellwood) stood out as the film’s only redeeming qualities. Despite a weak script and muddled direction and cinematography, these actors tried so hard to deliver the best performances they could. I’ll give them an E for effort.
In the end, Nickel Boys had potential but failed to deliver a compelling, cohesive narrative. While its intent to highlight an important historical story is laudable, its execution fell way short.
There was a lot of confusion and whispering among the audience about what was happening in the film. At one point, I was even approached in the ladies room by someone who asked if I understood the film or knew anything about the true story it was based on. As a history buff, I was familiar with the tragic events at the Dozier Academy, but it was clear that many others were not. The “Nickel Boys” film had Trevor and I saying WTF as well.
SYDNEY CHANDLER: 👜WRITER (my passion), PR, Editing, Consultant
