By: Gaëlle Gilles
In his feature directorial debut, "Nickel Boys," RaMell Ross tells the heart-wrenching story of Elwood and Turner, two boys sentenced to Nickel Academy, a reform school notorious for mistreatment and abuse that often turns deadly. The film is an adaptation of Colson Whitehead’s award-winning novel. Ross co-wrote the screenplay with writer and producer Joslyn Barnes. The drama stars Ethan Henessi (Elwood), Aunjenue Ellis-Taylor (Hattie), Brandon Wilson (Turner), and Daveed Diggs, a Tony and Grammy Award winner of "Hamilton" fame.
Ross’s breathtaking take on historical fiction is lauded as “a new American classic.” The feature, ingeniously shot from a point-of-view perspective, gives it an intimate and authentic feel. Opening scenes immerse the viewer in the wonder of childhood—lying in the grass under the sun, playing with Christmas tinsel falling from the tree, and other telltale signs of a child living a peaceful life in a loving family. Reality quickly sinks in with news of the happenings in Selma, images of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s broadcast on store television screens, and alligators freely roaming the streets, signaling that this is Florida in the Jim Crow era.
Elwood is a bright young man: studious, respectful, and optimistic about the future. He holds tightly to Dr. King’s every word and has a strong support system, including his grandmother, sisters, and a dedicated teacher committed to seeing him excel. With a unique opportunity to take college classes for free and meet the high expectations he and others have for him, Elwood packs his bags and sets off to answer his call to adventure. Instead, an innocent run-in with a career criminal leaves him with a record and a looming sentence at the academy.
Nickel Academy is a fictional reimagining of the real-life Dozier School for Boys in Marianna, Florida. The school, established in 1900, was shut down in 2011 following numerous claims of abuse and a failed inspection. After the closure, investigations revealed mass graves that accounted for hundreds of missing students. Reports also cited that nearly three times as many Black students were killed as white students.
On his first day, Elwood is driven to the academy alongside two white boys who are dropped in the white section. He sees them enter a white colonial-style dormitory with young white men playing flag football on the front lawn. Then Elwood is driven further down to dilapidated quarters with chipped paint, broken doors, and shattered windows.
In the Black section of the academy, children are told to follow the rules, work hard, and stay out of trouble to work their way up to “Ace” and graduate. They are taught that breaking the rules leads to a punishing encounter with one of the school's leaders, where, at times, some students never return.
In the lunchroom, Elwood meets Turner, who seems to know his way around the academy. The boys become friends with Turner showing Elwood the ropes and sharing his cynical worldview. At times the boys disagree, but ultimately they balance each other with their differing outlooks on life. Turner teaches Elwood to keep his head down while Elwood reminds him that justice and optimism will see them through any setback.
As part of their sentence, the boys are assigned chores around the academy, from painting to gravedigging and fighting in illegal boxing matches. Turner has a plum assignment doing housework around town with Harper, a young sympathetic white academy employee. The work is contracted to the academy at a discount, and Harper takes a little off the top, which he shares with Turner. He leverages his relationship with Harper to get Elwood involved in the easy assignment.
Elwood is trustworthy and hardworking but also vigilant, recording every one of the academy’s infractions in a journal. Elwood believes the journal will be his ticket to freedom, and Turner sees it as the object of unwanted attention that could ultimately seal their fate.
When state inspectors visit the school, the boys are seen wearing clean and well-pressed uniforms. They are also given a flavorful lunch with hefty portions, followed by an ice cream dessert. Elwood sees these treats for what they are and devises a plan to share his notebook. Seeing the determination on Elwood’s face, Turner asks if he could be the one to share it to prevent Elwood from getting caught. When the inspection fails, Turner hears of retaliation and decides there is only one way to protect Elwood. The boys take a chance and escape in the night. They steal bikes from one of Harper’s customers and flee to the woods.
The movie’s timeline is non-linear, frequently jumping from the ‘60s to the early 2010s. The audience is exposed to news clips of a world in flux and some of its evolving aspects. On one side, there’s the assassination of Dr. King; on the other, the broadcast of the moon landing. One scene shows people cheering athletes and celebrating marathoners, while another depicts protesters marching and dodging the violent stream of water from fire hoses. Later in life, former academy students cross paths, reflecting on what they don’t remember and what they can’t forget.
November 14 was the film’s second theatrical release in New York and the first feature screening of the annual Urbanworld Film Festival, now in its 28th year.
“We are very honored to have such an amazing film to start off our festival,” said festival Program Director Karen McMullen. “I saw this film just a few weeks ago, and it’s like art in motion; each frame can be frozen and hung on a wall. It blew me away, so you’re in for a special treat.”
The audience also heard from the film’s stars, Henessi, Wilson, and Ann-Taylor, during a post-screening Q&A session. They discussed what they tapped into to embody these characters and the value of sharing stories like this.
“We are their hope,” Ann-Taylor said. “We are the hope of these young boys, and we can make it so something like that can never happen again.” The film was produced by Orion, Amazon Studios, and Gem Studios and is expected to be released in theaters on December 13. Nickel Boys is a weighty film rich with history, tragedy, and lessons that will stay with you for a lifetime.
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