Runtime2h 20mGenreDramaDirected byRaMell RossWritten byRaMell Ross, Joslyn Barnes, Colson WhiteheadStarringEthan Herisse, Brandon Wilson, Aunjanue Ellis-TaylorDistributed byAmazon MGMMPAA RatingPG-13Release DateIn limited theaters on December 13, more to follow.
‘Nickel Boys’ Review: An Experimental Filmmaking Triumph
'Nickel Boys' is a mesmerizing form of storytelling imagined by director RaMell Ross. A truly unforgettable cinematic experience.
By far the most stunning film I saw at AFI FEST was RaMell Ross‘ spellbinding immersive feature Nickel Boys. Two years after debuting his documentary, Hale County This Morning, This Evening, the Academy Award-nominated director shifts into the scripted space with a beautiful sense of purpose and finesse. Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel “The Nickel Boys” by Colson Whitehead, Ross’ film adaptation brings the emotionally dense pages to life in the most remarkable and moving of ways.
What Happens
Nickel Boys explores the budding friendship between two young men who fight to survive within Nickel Academy. The prison-like school is a brutal all-boys reformatory program located deep in the Jim Crow South. Seen mostly through first-person POV, the audience is instantly immersed in the harsh realities that Elwood (Ethan Herisse) and Turner (Brandon Wilson) experience daily. Their struggles and hardships are viewed within an arms reach, it is impossible to absorb their stories without incredible intimacy.
Elwood is more reserved than Turner, whose confidence offers Elwood a sense of comfort, even if that confidence may be wavering. Despite Nickel’s brutality and unrelenting treatment of the black boys held captive, Elwood and Turner strive to find the silver lining even in the darkest of times. Running two hours and twenty minutes long, Nickel Boys requires some commitment from the audience to stay engaged. However, this is not a tall order, as it is easy to get immediately entrenched in the film’s gripping storyline.
Takeaway
Nickel Boys is a mesmerizing form of storytelling imagined by director RaMell Ross. He is a standout visionary and the result is an unforgettable cinematic experience. Further commanding the screen is the achingly delicate score by composers Alex Somers & Scott Alario. Their sonic interpretation of the story is gentle yet powerful. It will no doubt stir up feelings of melancholia inside every viewer. From top to bottom, Nickel Boys is phenomenal filmmaking.
Nickel Boys opens in select LA theaters on December 20 before expanding to additional markets in the subsequent weeks.
This review originally ran on November 5, 2024, during AFI FEST.
