Review of Fences (2016) by Derek W — 12 Feb 2017

Effortlessly adapting the stage play to the silver screen, "Fences" captures a refined and passionate cast in one of the most powerful and real stories of the year. Denzel Washington and Viola Davis were born to portray Troy and Rose Maxson, a couple living in Pittsburgh dealing with trials and heartache of the lower middle-class African-American community.

We find that Troy is hardly the ideal father and husband, but it is difficult to not sympathize with him. His joviality and bombast are as infectious as his character flaws are disdainful. Of any of the Academy Award nominated pictures this year, I haven't laughed or cried harder than with this film, and that is probably because it is by far the most brutally honest and real.

It is a deeply resonant emotional roller-coaster, grounded in the struggle of this family's lives, and you know these people. Every once in awhile, it is essential to step back from the fantasy and escapism of film to be reminded of the harsh truths of American life, and there are few that have accomplished this task so well as "Fences".