Review of Fruitvale Station (2013) by Nate J — 08 Jan 2014

I have to confess, being a Brit, I didn't really know much about the case. I vaguely remember the story on the news, but we had a black man shot here soon after (which caused our riots) and the stories merged for me.

So I was intrigued to see a movie made on the basis that I didn't know the circumstances around his murder. This movie is gritty and has a lot of black cultural references, but away from it's hardened exterior is a story a young man who was gunned down for no other reason than literally trying to keep the peace.

I think the hardest parts to watch are Oscar's human moments, the interactions with various people on the lead up to the incident. It's so touching to see a young man from an area that isn't all mansions and convertibles take the time out of his day to really interact with people.

I am disgusted at the sentence the cops got for this, it's an appalling miscarriage of Justice. The final moments of the film will break the strongest person, it had me balling. A truly moving tribute to man who had made mistakes and spent his days trying to rectify them.