So it's not Crash, right?

Isn't this the cop who claimed he thought he had his Taser in his hand?

I thought it was great as well. It does a great job of foreshadowing the events to come and by the end it's undeniably tense. There are quite a few heartbreaking moments. And I thought the three leads were incredible - Michael B. Jordan and Octavia Spencer both certainly deserve Oscar consideration and I was also very impressed with Melonie Diaz as well. Definitely worth seeing. A-

The movie is uncomplicated in what you're ultimately supposed to feel about Oscar, but the character study Coogler creates is powerful because of how complicated it is, and that's what makes this movie work. Oscar is a guy who from his time in prison to cheating on his girlfriend to losing his job to on the risk of not paying rent to on the verge of returning to drug dealing had screwed up a ton. But I still fell for him, because this is a guy trying to do the right thing, and Michael B. Jordan brings so much nuance to this role that I believed all of it. This could have easily been a film where the event was the entire story and we feel for Oscar because, like anyone in this real-life situation, we would feel sorry for him. But Coogler doesn't take the easy way out. Instead, he writes and directs a gorgeous portrait of this life. They don't gloss over the ugliness is Oscar's life, and as a result, its beauty shines out.

There's a lot worth talking about here, from Jordan's performance to Spencer's to Diaz's (she gets less to do but there's a scene where she slaps her hands on her legs out of fear and anger and sadness and through the way she conveys it you're right there with her emotions) to Rachel Morrison's cinematography (a rare situation where shakycam photography really works) to how much this movie does with such a short running time (for 85 minutes it's pacing is pretty much perfect). There's also a conversation to be had about what details Coogler leaves out (reportedly the officer who shoots Oscar said beforehand that he's going to tase him that's not in the movie, but the movie still portrays this guy as not knowing he was going to shoot him) and how they add or subtract this story, because I don't think there's a clear answer.

Fruitvale is one of the most memorable films of the year so far for me. True stories can be a minefield when it comes to emotionally manipulating an audience, but this is a film where the reality of this situation made for a positive experience for me.

A-

FRUITVALE STATION

I liked how they opened this film with one of the video clips of the actual event that occurred that night which the film leads up too. It let's the viewer know if you are unaware what to expect and to pay attention to this person's life and just question how this all happened and maybe a why too. Now I didn't read up about this event or Oscar Grant and whether any of this was embellished but for what I watched I was glued. It's a little peak into this young man's life and his struggles be with family, work and being a young parent. I thought it was well acted and I especially felt for Spencer's performance. Jordan was excellent as well and the woman who played his girlfriend. Now, even though the film starts the way it did and ready's you for what will happen it was still powerful emotionally.

Grade - B

I absolutely loved this. Cried, and left the theater with an uneasy mix of anger and sadness. It really hit me deep for some reason, more than any movie has in a while. Michael B. Jordan expertly portrays the two sides of Oscar: the loving father/son/boyfriend, and the aggressive kid prone to trouble. He really sells Oscar's efforts to get his life straight before it was tragically cut short; at times, I was reminded of a young Denzel. Octavia Spencer and Melonie Diaz are also wonderful, in performances completely free of histrionics. A

For some reason I really loved the scene with the dog. I wasn't completely in love with the movie but it's certainly effective. I would be cool if Michael B. Jordan got Oscar recognition for this. This definitely shows that he has what it takes to be a star. I thought the movie was really well done/acted. I liked that it didn't really hit you over the head about race but that factor is still there. The buildup towards the incident was also pretty tense even though you knew what would happen.

wtf Chad Michael Murray was the officer that shot Oscar!? I didn't recognize him at all.

If that's true then I didn't notice him either.

Jordan is fantastic in this and if his name is still thrown around later on, he should be in Oscar nomination consideration here. It's great how the film shows both the good and bad sides of Oscar while allowing us to still feel for him as he reaches his untimely death. Just a truly gripping film from start to finish.

This is a solid, straightforward drama based on a sad true story. If a person does not go in aware of the act of violence which will transpire in the third act, the film informs them via an opening excerpt of real footage from the night a Bay Area Rapid Transit policeman shot dead an unarmed African American man, Oscar Grant III, detained alongside his friends after a fistfight on a train on New Year's Eve. Knowledge of the destination gives the film, even in its most tender moments, a sense of despair, doom, and suspense as Oscar's every decision and movement, his every greeting and farewell, becomes a grave symbol of the transience of existence. Michael B. Jordan's lead performance is at times charming, at times frustrating (Oscar is not without a hot temper and an impulsive, juvenile quality), and always arresting and authentic. I do wonder, though, if the film loses its way at times in its depiction of the character: for example, though I cannot say whether it is true or a fiction, there is a scene where Oscar encounters a stray dog which plays as contrived, a shade too pat and literary. Another moment in which the film cuts from the climactic violence to a nostalgic, warm shot of Oscar embracing his daughter in the afternoon sun also feels forced, as if the writer/director is afraid for a moment the audience will not understand how sad the arbitrary shooting is without reminding us with the subtlety of a Michael Bay action sequence.

B

I wonder how much of this film is true versus fiction. The girl Oscar meets in the grocery store and is later on the train, for example. It would be interesting if she were purely an invention of the film and, if so, why.

I found the behavior of Oscar's friends toward the female cop (both their words and their lunges toward her), at least as presented in the film, deplorable.

And you are a pig in general.

This was veer very good. Packs an emotional punch even though you know what is going to happen. Not sure how many liberties were taken in telling the story - but it's certainly an eye opener. Great performances all round - but especially Jordan - who's star is definitely on the rise.

Grade : A

Damn this one got to me. By the end I was pretty teary eyed, but I guess it's because I can relate to this kind of stuff ALOT more than I thought.

Michael B. Jordan is a fantastic young actor.

phony

Magnus posted exactly what I was going to post. Verbatim.

This was really good. I actually did not know the end, and I did not understand the bit in the beginning that was supposedly showing it, so I was actually legitimately shocked. I really was so sad at the end; such a tragic end to a life that did not need to end so early. I really did wish that Oscar would have just done what the police fricking said! He was not guilty! Resisting just made it worse! I don't know why people think it's a good idea to resist the police. Not that the police officer is justified in his actions. He isn't at all. But I definitely think he could have avoided being shot if he just went along with it

A-

Oh my. Took me 4 years too long to see this. I actually didn't think I was emotionally connecting with the film until the end. And then all the backstory that preceded it came rushing in. Devastating.

A