The story of Oscar Grant III, a 22-year-old Bay Area resident, who crosses paths with friends, enemies, family, and strangers on the last day of 2008.The story of Oscar Grant III, a 22-year-old Bay Area resident, who crosses paths with friends, enemies, family, and strangers on the last day of 2008.The story of Oscar Grant III, a 22-year-old Bay Area resident, who crosses paths with friends, enemies, family, and strangers on the last day of 2008.
- Awards
- 36 wins & 58 nominations
Marjorie Crump-Shears
- Grandma Bonnie
- (as Marjorie Shears)
Bianca Rodriguez III
- Vanessa
- (as Bianca Rodriguez)
Kenny Grimm
- Jason
- (as Kenny Griffin)
Tommy Wright
- Tim
- (as Thomas Wright)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAfter funding fell through, Octavia Spencer offered to forgo her salary to help Ryan Coogler keep to his budget.
- GoofsWhen Oscar's mother visits him in prison, the text on-screen reads "New Year's 2007." Oscar mentions seeing WALL·E (2008) with his daughter. That film was released in June 2008.
- Quotes
Oscar Grant: You shot me. I got a daughter...
- ConnectionsFeatured in Maltin on Movies: Pacific Rim (2013)
Featured review
An accomplished film from young writer/director Ryan Coogler detailing the events that led up to the murder of Oscar Grant, a 20-something black man, by San Francisco police on New Year's Eve.
Most of the film is a day-in-the-life study of Oscar, a young man who's trying to get straight in an environment that doesn't make it easy. He's recently spent time in jail when the movie opens, and he's lied to his girlfriend (with whom he shares a young daughter) about getting fired from his job. The lure of petty drug hustling is strong, but he's fighting the temptation, and he's got a mom (Octavia Spencer) who checks in occasionally to remind him how disappointed she'll be if he falls back on crime. The film avoids making any kind of hero out of Oscar -- he's a decent guy who's fighting the odds in not terrible but not great circumstances, and though his murder could easily have become a symbol of white oppression (which in real life it did), the movie doesn't force that idea down its audience's throats.
One of the things I liked best about "Fruitvale Station" was how honest it was about its portrayal of white/black relations. White people don't play much of a role at all in these black people's lives -- the cop who murders Oscar is white, but the film shows other interactions with random white people that are perfectly normal and kind. The movie isn't concerned with preaching about how whites and blacks should get along -- instead it acknowledges that whites and blacks exist in very different cultures and explores the worst case scenario of how tragic the outcome can be when one doesn't make the slightest effort at accepting the humanity of the other.
Grade: A-
Most of the film is a day-in-the-life study of Oscar, a young man who's trying to get straight in an environment that doesn't make it easy. He's recently spent time in jail when the movie opens, and he's lied to his girlfriend (with whom he shares a young daughter) about getting fired from his job. The lure of petty drug hustling is strong, but he's fighting the temptation, and he's got a mom (Octavia Spencer) who checks in occasionally to remind him how disappointed she'll be if he falls back on crime. The film avoids making any kind of hero out of Oscar -- he's a decent guy who's fighting the odds in not terrible but not great circumstances, and though his murder could easily have become a symbol of white oppression (which in real life it did), the movie doesn't force that idea down its audience's throats.
One of the things I liked best about "Fruitvale Station" was how honest it was about its portrayal of white/black relations. White people don't play much of a role at all in these black people's lives -- the cop who murders Oscar is white, but the film shows other interactions with random white people that are perfectly normal and kind. The movie isn't concerned with preaching about how whites and blacks should get along -- instead it acknowledges that whites and blacks exist in very different cultures and explores the worst case scenario of how tragic the outcome can be when one doesn't make the slightest effort at accepting the humanity of the other.
Grade: A-
- evanston_dad
- Apr 19, 2014
- Permalink
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Details
Box office
- Budget
- $900,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $16,101,339
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $386,291
- Jul 14, 2013
- Gross worldwide
- $17,385,830
- Runtime1 hour 25 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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