HTF REVIEW: Redemption (1 Viewer)

[Michael Osadciw]

REDEMPTION





Studio: 20th Century Fox Television
Aired: 2003

U.S. Rating: Not Rated

Film Length: 93 minutes
Genre: Drama

Aspect Ratio: Side A: 1.85:1 anamorphic, Side B: Pan & Scan
Audio: English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, Spanish Dolby Surround
Subtitles: English & Spanish
Closed Captioned: Yes
SLP: US $27.90






Release Date: August 17, 2004



Film Rating: :star: :star: 1/2 / :star: :star: :star: :star: :star:

Starring: Jamie Foxx (Stan “Tookie” Williams), Lynn Whitfield (Barbara Becnel)

Directed by: Vondie Curtis Hall
Written by: J.T. Allen

Forced Trailers: None


Gangster, Death Row Inmate, Nobel Peace Price Nominee


Redemption: the process of making good from the consequences of wrongdoing.

Reading the Oxford dictionary as he is locked in his prison cell, Stan “Tookie” Williams is no longer the young and foolish man who lived the freedom of the gangster lifestyle in South Central L.A. Once known as the King of the Crips, Williams co-founded the gang to protect his teenaged community from outside gangs and violence. The Crips may have started as an isolated incident, but Williams saw the gang increase dramatically in numbers, spreading across California to Florida at the other end of the U.S.A. The Crips even went international with copycat chapters in countries such as South Africa. What once was started as a way to protect a community from outside gangs and violence, the Crips became a group of violent gang terrorists to their communities pitting black man against black man. The gangs fell into the seduction of drug dealing and street violence that no longer used fists. The wide use of weapons made the streets unsafe for anyone.

Williams was charged with the murder of four people in 1981 and was placed on California’s death row. Although he denies he did the crime, he's awaiting execution and has spent the past 23 years redeeming what he started. He no longer participates in a gang lifestyle while in California’s San Quentin’s Prison. Deeply regretting his involvement, he now lives on the motive to prevent the gang problem from expanding further. In his first few years of prison, he achieved help from a journalist to begin writing and publishing children’s books from the prison. They warned of gangs and the pressures of being involved, and provided guidance on how not to get involved. Publishers frowned upon having a man on death row writing children’s anti-gang books. It was a difficult sell that proved to pay off. While Williams receives none of the profits, the books reached very reputable sales across the U.S.A, South Africa, and Japan. Williams impressed the international community for his achievement and thus was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize for this work. He did not win the award. He did win a second nomination for a Nobel Prize for Literature and even received a personal visit from the wife of South Africa’s past-president Nelson Mandela.

This film isn’t much about the formation of the gang and Williams’s life before he was convicted. It all takes place after he’s been convicted and we do see glimpses of the past in the form or flashbacks. The film concentrates on his discussions with his soon-to-be co-author Barbara Becnel. She’s the person involved with helping Williams achieve his goal. Some of the discussions are long and don’t always deliver interest to the viewer. In some of the action sequences, the film doesn’t glorify his gang life at all. It denounces it as it shows the result of gang life: imprisonment or death. In prison, Williams has the rest of his life in his little cell all chained up, to think about the kind of life he had and where he went wrong. He knows his death awaits him, so we see his motivation to make changes in society in hopes that no one else will follow his path. While sometimes I feel this film hints at Williams being a victim of the system(s), this is not the place for discussion of this subject and I’ll let you be the judge while viewing this film. I am happy that this film balances between schools of thought. We can be thankful that Williams is making a difference and has done more than most inmates have while redeeming themselves.


VIDEO QUALITY :star: :star: 1/2 / :star: :star: :star: :star: :star:

A variety of stocks were used for the making of this film to reduce the confusion for the viewers as they are transported between different eras in Tookie’s life. Each carries a particular hue that is used stylistically throughout the film. At many moments, the film uses excessive grain for the intention of flashbacks and should not be confused with a bad transfer. Unfortunately, the film is marred from excessive softness in most of the scenes. Outdoor present day shots can be bright but lack real detail to give it a sense of 3-D. In the instance of Barbara’s car driving away from the prison, the car is barely discernable aside from being a lump on screen. Still, the film has well balanced colours, although some interior shots may seem too warm to some giving those with black skin a slightly redder appearance. Black levels can be solid in some scenes but too high in others. This film, which is available in its aspect ratio of 1.85:1 and is anamorphically enhanced, is not always consistent in image quality from scene to scene. Still, the specific gloomy blue and green hues intended for inside the prison are effective and chilling. A fullscreen version is available on side B.


AUDIO QUALITY :star: :star: :star: :star: / :star: :star: :star: :star: :star:

Far more effective than its video, the 5.1 Dolby Digital surround soundtrack kicks hard with bass from the film’s rap soundtrack. Punctuating bass is active in the main channels as well as the LFE and isn’t used much beyond music. Surround immersion is excellent as all five channels are used throughout 80% of the film with the remaining 20% being active up front. Effective are the flashback sequences that utilize the circular soundstage for maximum excitement. Frequently, dialogue can be a little heavy sounding and a little more forward from the two main channels. There are also audio ‘pops’ every now and then too. But for a television broadcast film, this is an impressive soundtrack enjoyed on DVD.


SPECIAL FEATURES :star: :star: / :star: :star: :star: :star: :star:

This disc includes a commentary by director Vondie Curtis-Hall, editor Terilyn Shropshire, and the real-life Barbara Becnel who co-authored Williams’s books. The commentary really consists of two separate recordings pieced together. Becnel’s recording is done solo, while the other two are together. Pieces of each of the recordings are used throughout, although Becnel’s recording is favored almost all of the time as she clearly dominates this commentary track.

The other two special features are messages from Stan “Tookie” himself. One is a general message running at about four and a half minutes and the second is a message about the “Redemption” film (4.44). Both are audio recordings from telephoning from the prison and are accompanied by pictures of scenes from the film and images of Williams.


THOUGHTS…

With an interesting look into Williams’s mind after his confinement in prison, Redemption is effective enough to serve as an extension of the books written by him and appeal to the larger audience of young adults involved in violent gangs. This film serves the purpose to let it be known that gang violence is wrong and just isn’t worth it. As Williams bluntly tells the children in his books: "Don't join a gang, you won't find what you're looking for. All you will find is trouble, pain and sadness. I know. I did."

Michael Osadciw
04.07.28