If you’re looking for a solid and emotional film about family, the duties of fatherhood, and the betrayal of loved ones, then Fences might be the film you’re looking for since it tackled all of these topics in respectful and beautiful ways that will surely leave you wanting more from the incredible team of actors, screenwriters & director that made this film possible. Before getting into whether Fences is your cup of tea, let’s first talk about the history of this film and how it came to be.
August Wilson was a playwright who wrote the original Fences for theater audiences in 1983. Lloyd Richards directed it in 1985. The play received general praise from critics and audiences alike for its depiction of the hardships that plenty of Black families went through in American history.
The play was so successful it became a Broadway production in 1987, becoming one of the most frequently performed plays in the US.
When the play was in the works to be adapted into a film back in 1987, Paramount Pictures originally opted to use August Wilson’s screenplay; however, Wilson insisted a Black director direct the film to capture the right tone for the film.
Paramount respected Wilson’s wishes, but this decision caused the film to be stalled for over twenty years just to find the right director; eventually, Denzel Washington was brought on to direct the film in 2016.
Now that you know a bit about the film’s history and how it came to be, let’s get into what makes Fences such a great film.
Fences takes place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, during the civil rights movement between 1957 and 1965. Throughout the film, we follow our protagonists: Troy Maxson, played by Denzel Washington, Rose Maxson, played by Viola Davis, and their son, Cory Maxson, played by Jovan Adepo.
We see the lives of this family and how they start off as one filled with joy, companionship, and love then turn into broken ones filled with pain, resentment, and loss because of Troy’s actions in his pursuit of desiring more outside of his family.
He condemns those who don’t see the need to have responsibilities and commitments in their lives, but along the way, falls into a cycle he spent his whole life avoiding because of his past (if you’ve seen the film, you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about).
Fences tackles plenty of serious topics, such as abusive households, trauma, philosophical conflicts, toxic masculinity, and mortality, finding ways to convey its messages/themes in subtle and clever ways. To directly quote one of Bono’s lines (Troy’s friend): “Some people build fences to keep people out, and other people build fences to keep people in.”
Fences won 29 awards and was nominated for 96, including Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Adapted Screenplay, Top 12 Films, and many more.
Overall, if you’re looking for a film that’s filled with heart but will also leave you with a bittersweet taste, then Fences just might be your kind of film.
