Fences (2016)

Fences, the late August Wilson play adaptation, is a movie with universal messages about life, love, family, parenting and black identity. It shows the hardship of life in a common Africanamerican family set in the suburbs of Pittsburgh and the margins of society. It carries a universal message about a disappointed father, who wants to protect his teenage son of life disappointments. Haunted by his inner demons, Troy Maxon fails to show real love, instead we see his harsh personality towards his son and his wife. Too many disappointments in the past have led him to shut off his emotions towards his family but still remaining human and adopting his extramarital child. The movie depicts a society put on the social margins, fighting everyday issues and marital problems but giving us a ray of hope about complex family relations and a young generation respecting their parents. The masterful performance of Denzel Washington and Academy awarded Viola Davis brought this universal play to the screen, giving the viewers a real movie gem and a show calling for their emotional responses and a deeper introspective in their own personal relationships.

Fmovies: Based on the Pulitzer Prize winning play of the same name by The Late/Great August Wilson, 'Fences' is a film that boasts Fabulous Performances from its terrific cast that Shine undeniably, but the film, as a whole, is overlong! Also, the narrative gets repetitive after a point.

'Fences' Synopsis: A working-class African-American father tries to raise his family in the 1950s, while coming to terms with the events of his life.

Denzel Washington directs 'Fences' with a realistic feeling & the film legend is absolutely terrific in the central role. As Troy Maxson, the protagonist, Denzel is firebrand, delivering a performance full of feeling & frustration. But the film belongs to Viola Davis, who steals the show. Davis, an absolute acting pioneer, is priceless as the wife, offering a portrayal of loyalty, motherhood & heartbreak. Davis is sure to win Awards ahead (Already Having Won The Golden-Globe recently), yes Academy, I'm talking to you! In supporting roles, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Jovan Adepo, Russell Hornsby, Saniyya Sidney & Mykelti Williamson lend remarkable support.

Now coming to the minuses! The Screenplay works in parts. Considering its been adapted from a play, the writing sticks to its true roots a bit too much. The locations remain the same & the literal translation becomes monotonous after a point. Troy's bitter attitude towards his Sons & his Wife's sacrifices, don't engross you beyond a point. The Writing needed to be crisper. And the film is overlong! At a 139-minutes, 'Fences' overstays its welcome by at least 20-minutes. I wish the narrative was stronger, as it begins beautifully.

So what's the final word? 'Fences' is greatly acted, but as a film, it's a disappointment!

Denzel Washington is clearly one of the best actors we have ever had, African-American or otherwise. Whether it has been in serious, sober-minded films like GLORY, MALCOLM X, and COURAGE UNDER FIRE, or explosive action films like CRIMSON TIDE, MAN ON FIRE, and UNSTOPPABLE, Washington has given all of himself, and then some. And then, like more than a few great actors, he also itched to get behind, as well as in front of, the camera as a director, which he did in 2002 with ANTWONE FISHER, and again in 2007 with THE GREAT DEBATERS. He does double duty again for one of the most insightful and true films of 2016, FENCES.

Scripted by noted playwright August Wilson from his own Pulitzer Prize-winning play, FENCES stars Washington as an average Joe-type sanitation worker in late 1950s Pittsburgh dealing with the world at large. He had been a baseball player once before World War II, but it never amounted to much; and when one of his sons (Jovan Adepo) wants to get into football while going to college, Washington tries to steer him away, managing only to alienate his son further than he already is. Washington does have a good friend in Mr. Bono (Stephen Henderson), but he is still troubled by a dark park of himself, one that threatens the eighteen-year marriage between him and his wife Rose (Viola Davis).

Adapting stage plays to the screen is not exactly the easiest thing in the world to do, because what works on a stage needs a great deal to transfer it to a movie, and a real, breathing set. Fortunately, Washington found a way of making it happen by filming in a part of Pittsburgh that seems not to have changed all that much from the way it must have looked in the actual time that FENCES is set. Wilson's stage play and screenplay are full of language and slang that is very right for the times, and, yes, this does include a profuse use of the 'N' word. But a certain amount of uncomfortable language is what is necessary for a story like this, especially given that it involves not only Washington on both sides of the camera, but also another hugely superb performance by Davis as his wife, who manages to somehow stand by her man despite the horrible secret he reveals near the end. Equally fine in supporting roles are Adepo and Henderson, as well as Mykelti Williamson as a former war buddy of his whose mind isn't right because of a severe head wound suffered in the war, and Russell Hornsby as Washington's son by an earlier marriage who constantly comes to his dad on payday for ten-dollar loans.

Though it is an African-American cast and story, FENCES works because it feels universal, and it is a story that could happen in any family, regardless of skin color or ethnicity. Washington and Wilson (who passed away in 2005, and thus never saw FENCES make it to the big screen) make this very clear but in a non-heavy-handed way, and with dialogue scenes that are often long but never dull, earning it justifiable and favorable comparisons to Arthur Miller's classic "Death Of A Salesman".

All of these elements make FENCES easily one of the best films of 2016, and a sure-fire winner likely to be regarded as a classic in a very short time.

Fences fmovies. When you pair up Denzel Washington with Viola Davis on screen, you know you're in for two of the most outstanding performances you'll see all year and that's exactly what you get from FENCES. That said, if only director Denzel Washington and his crew could've figured out some ways to lessen the stage play feel to it and make this seem more cinematic. But then again, breaking out of that format is indeed usually the challenge when dealing with straight up adaptations from stage plays, just like "August: Osage County" a few years ago.

Scripted by August Wilson, adapted by Wilson's own Pulitzer Prize-winning play, Denzel Washington plays an African-American father struggling with race relations in the United States while trying to raise his family in the 1950s. He's still bitter from his doomed baseball career in the past, blames it on the white man, so when his son tries to get into sports, he discourages him, telling him that the white man wouldn't give him a single opportunity out there in the field. Denzel's character's wife, played by Viola Davis, faithfully stands by his side despite the secret that would change their family forever.

Story-wise, it doesn't get more well-thought out than FENCES, it's dialogue-driven, it's performance-driven, this material is every actor's dream come true because it has so many layers and it provides room for you to showcase the best version of your chops. We know Denzel and Viola Davis are phenomenal, but FENCES allows them to venture into places and show us shades that may not have been seen before. And I'm sure it feels liberating for all the actors involved in this film to just dig deep down, tap into those emotions and lay them bare for the world to see, and there's no wrong way of doing it.

The conflicts in FENCES are powerful, like a fist through a wall. Nuances surround the characters so you end up understanding where they're coming from despite being in agreement or disagreement with many of their decisions. To a certain extent, I think Quentin Tarantino and Aaron Sorkin fans would find FENCES appealing since each of the characters has incredibly long lines that run like 100 mph. Marital affair, resentments, built up hatred, forgiving your past, there's no shortage of drama in FENCES, its cup overflows. But again, as I said earlier, I think there's a missed opportunity here, the film just didn't do enough to make itself appear cinematic. Composer Marcelo Zarvos' music is almost non-existent. Forget the backseat, many of film's elements are practically locked up in the trunk.

The acting in this film is outstanding. Denzel and Viola are truly at their best and the consistency with which they convey the depth of emotion required of them in this film is outstanding. To me, this was the best part about the film. It was a little difficult to sit through this one, mostly because it is a movie in which not much happens. Don't mistake this as a comment from someone who loves action-packed movies (although I do sometimes), but rather it plods along and neither has very high highs or very low lows. As such, I drifted in and out of the story and was still able to keep up. It is important story to tell, but I can see how it was potentially better as a play. It is definitely worth seeing, if nothing else for the superb acting.

I didn't like this movie as much as I expected to. Sorry. The movie centers around Troy Maxon (Denzel Washington), a father to two boys of different mothers, a husband to Rose (played wonderfully by Viola Davis) for the past 18 years, an ex-con, a garbage man, and above all, an ordinary black man in the 1950's.

No doubt it was a powerful script that most likely created an incredible play but it was not meant for the screen. It was obvious that it was a play, in the way they spoke and entered a room and carried themselves in a scene. I, of course, have not seen the play so I cannot speak with 100% certainty but I feel like the script wasn't adapted for the screen at all. It's not like it needed any major changes, just a few here and there to improve clarity. The passage of time confused me throughout. A scene would end and it would be the next day, then a minute passes and it abruptly jumps to six months later with no indication. This could be a statement on how his life passed quickly and routinely, but it felt like a swing and a miss for me.

Viola Davis was wonderful. She deserves every award coming her way. I could sing songs of praise about how magnificent she was. 10/10 for her. Beautiful.

Denzel Washington was certainly egging for an Oscar as he did what he did, but that's not degrading his performance. He did do good, but it was a bit distracting when he stole the show and didn't really let the other actors bounce off each other and him as much. It was all about him.

Even though I constantly found myself criticizing this movie, I did like it. It had a magnitude that I cannot explain, otherwise I would've given it a much lower rating. I recommend this if you are willing to. I will warn you, it is tough to sit through a movie with no one to root for. Washington's character is not a good person and very unlikable, you don't really want to cheer him on.