Review of Fresh (2009) by Alejandro R — 28 Oct 2016

WOW! This film sucker-punched me. Very intelligent with some depth and a great ending wraps it all up really well. The teenage protagonist here does not survive the harsh inner city, but "conquers" it by being incredibly strategic and employing lessons that his distant father teaches him in chess. Probably not very realistic, but instead it adds a kind of mythic quality to the story. The young hero here goes through his journey and rights a number of wrongs getting some important lessons along the way.

Even personally brought back some memories as I grew up in the area and recognized places from the 90s.