Chukwu's "Till" is the cinematic representation of the tragic and vile murder of Emmett Till in 1955. Prior to this October 2022 biopic, in late January of 2022, ABC released a six hour, six-part, limited series on the Emmett Till story titled "Women of the Movement". Arguably, it can be stated that the series is an immersive, comprehensive, and harrowing portrayal of the individuals, environment, and injustice that befell Emmett, his mother Mamie, Emmett's family, and an entire African American community. Albeit a strong and emotional performance from Danielle Deadwyler, the tonality and expression of Chukwu's film is very different from the ABC series, and is largely executed in the style of a theater production with scenes acted out in a manner that reflects actors delivering their scenes in a controlled and timed fashion without emotional and realistic spontaneity. For instance, the scene of Mamie fainting on the ground upon hearing that her child had been found murdered, played out like an on-stage performance with the support cast gathering around and reacting as a diorama scene without active realism to the event. Another instance of diorama scene configuration can immediately be seen in the following sequence of shots, where a camera is pulled on a dolly slider through two different households (one white and one black), in addition to Mamie's home, as they react to the televised and radio news of Emmett Till's murder.
Although creative from the standpoint of the director and the cinematographer, it does not playout like a traditional film's portrayal of immediate visual realism. Moreover, there is a lot of dead time spent in specific shots that does not add emotional or historical context to the development of the known story. Granted that this film is only a two-hour production, as opposed to "Women of the Movement", this is not an excuse for the shortcomings of support cast character development and their portrayal not being authentically written (i.e., superficial without true homage to the actual historical figures), nor fully executed in a manner that depicts timeless performances as opposed to simply a passing acquaintance or thought. Inconsistency in the cinematic framing of shots shows the lack the dynamic structure of positioning that builds tension or captures the emotional severity that is present in several critical scenes during the film. Additionally, the cinematic score from composer Korzeniowski, at times, subjectively choses the wrong tonality and expression in several important moments, which can detract the viewer from any tension that should be the focus of a particular scene.
Overall, the film lacks a timeless aura with the gravitas that can be found in the 1988 film "Mississippi Burning", or the 1992 biopic film "Malcolm X". Furthermore, the accuracy of the film's dialog in relation with historical dialog and context is flawed (e.g., the interaction of Emmett Till and Carolyn Bryant at the store, or the kidnapping of Emmett Till from the home of Mose Wright). A bit off-putting was the director's choice of quickly glancing over the evil expressions of taunt and sneering malice from the Bryant's and the overall racist culture of Mississippi in the town of Money during the trial, including the jurors, although it could be argued that the emphasis was to focus on Mamie Till-Mobley and not on the perpetrators. The story of injustice that her son faced was not fully realized in the second act of the film (i.e., following the murder), and quite frankly, the film ran out of time and steam, choosing to inform the audience of a complex life that Mamie led following the events of her son's trial through the epilogue.
Although creative from the standpoint of the director and the cinematographer, it does not playout like a traditional film's portrayal of immediate visual realism. Moreover, there is a lot of dead time spent in specific shots that does not add emotional or historical context to the development of the known story. Granted that this film is only a two-hour production, as opposed to "Women of the Movement", this is not an excuse for the shortcomings of support cast character development and their portrayal not being authentically written (i.e., superficial without true homage to the actual historical figures), nor fully executed in a manner that depicts timeless performances as opposed to simply a passing acquaintance or thought. Inconsistency in the cinematic framing of shots shows the lack the dynamic structure of positioning that builds tension or captures the emotional severity that is present in several critical scenes during the film. Additionally, the cinematic score from composer Korzeniowski, at times, subjectively choses the wrong tonality and expression in several important moments, which can detract the viewer from any tension that should be the focus of a particular scene.
Overall, the film lacks a timeless aura with the gravitas that can be found in the 1988 film "Mississippi Burning", or the 1992 biopic film "Malcolm X". Furthermore, the accuracy of the film's dialog in relation with historical dialog and context is flawed (e.g., the interaction of Emmett Till and Carolyn Bryant at the store, or the kidnapping of Emmett Till from the home of Mose Wright). A bit off-putting was the director's choice of quickly glancing over the evil expressions of taunt and sneering malice from the Bryant's and the overall racist culture of Mississippi in the town of Money during the trial, including the jurors, although it could be argued that the emphasis was to focus on Mamie Till-Mobley and not on the perpetrators. The story of injustice that her son faced was not fully realized in the second act of the film (i.e., following the murder), and quite frankly, the film ran out of time and steam, choosing to inform the audience of a complex life that Mamie led following the events of her son's trial through the epilogue.