Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Colson Whitehead, “Nickel Boys” chronicles the powerful friendship between two young African-American men navigating the harrowing trials of reform school together in Florida.

RaMell Ross’s ‘Nickel Boys’ is an adaptation of a Colson Whitehead novel (the novel is called ‘The Nickel Boys’ – the slight name difference chosen to allow the book to be the top result in search engines under its actual name), which in turn is loosely based on a notorious Florida reform school that was known for its abuse of students. It tells the story of Elwood Curtis (Ethan Herisse), a talented young black student in Jim Crow era Florida who has been earmarked by his teacher for an accelerated study programme at a black supportive college. When he makes a fateful decision one day while travelling to his new campus, he is arrested by the police and sent to a reform school called the Nickel Academy, where most of the movie takes place. Here, he meets Turner (Brandon Wilson), and they bond over their shared experience while trying to stay alive and hopeful in a cruel environment.

One of the first things that will strike you about ‘Nickel Boys’ is its first-person filmmaking style, which is a style more commonly associated with video games and less so movies. It is an intriguing choice and is both this movie’s biggest strength and its biggest weakness. A strength as it puts you in the shoes of the characters and helps you to experience life as they experienced it (the whole ‘walk a mile in someone else’s shoes’ adage), and its uniqueness adds a different perspective to a story about black trauma. However, it does mean you aren’t seeing the characters/actors emote as much as I wanted too and that creates a distance between the movie and the audience that is difficult to bridge. I’m glad Ross attempted something different, but I’m on the fence as to whether it was successful overall and perhaps a hybrid approach may have found the right balance.

It is an excellent production in all other respects, with a terrific score, good performances and a strong, powerful story at its core. I also really liked the insertions of media footage into the drama, which was an effective approach at showcasing the wider societal and racial context in which Elwood & Turner’s personal traumas were operating within. ‘Nickel Boys’ is an ambitious attempt at turning one of Colson Whitehead’s best novels into an equally affecting movie, and while not everything resonated with me as strongly as intended, this remains a powerful piece of work from RaMell Ross.

Rating: 4/5

Directed By: RaMell Ross

Starring: Ethan Herisse, Ethan Cole Sharp, Daveed Diggs, Brandon Wilson, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Hamish Linklater, Fred Hechinger and Jimmie Fails

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt23055660/