This was a solid film. It didn't blow me away, but I found it to be a well-crafted and engaging story anchored by some strong performances from Denzel Washington and Derek Luke.
The acting is one of the film's highlights. I generally like Denzel Washington and this film was no exception. As usual, he gives a strong performance which helps to heighten the emotional power of certain scenes. I was unfamiliar with Derek Luke going into it, but I also admired his work and thought he was able to carry the film well, even in the final act where Washington's character was mostly absent. Though I wasn't familiar with many of the actors who played smaller parts, I thought they were fine as well. Overall, I didn't have any issues with a particular cast member.
As far as its story goes, Antwone Fisher is a character study on the titular character, which explores how he grew up, the many hardships he faced, and the way they made him violent later on. While a lot of the film consists of flashbacks to his childhood, it also spends a decent amount of time detailing how his various sessions with Dr. Davenport influenced his behavior, which is detailed through various people who either help or hinder him, like his relationship with Cheryl, the various people he runs into who provoke him into fights, or his trouble with fitting into various events he attends. This led to a handful of powerful moments which kept me on board throughout the film.
I don't think every scene hit its mark though. For instance, the reunion of Antwone and his mother felt rather brief and not as powerful as it should've been. Also, Davenport telling Antwone that their time together helped him to confront his own demons fell flat as, while Davenport's conflict with his wife was certainly made clear, his own road to recovery wasn't fleshed out enough for me to buy their final conversation. In spite of these occasional missteps though, I did enjoy the story a decent bit, if not loving it per se.
Overall, I enjoyed this film quite a bit. Sure, it's a rather straightforward story and not every beat of it landed, but many other aspects did and the excellent twin performances from Washington and Luke helped to heighten the emotional resonance of the film.
The acting is one of the film's highlights. I generally like Denzel Washington and this film was no exception. As usual, he gives a strong performance which helps to heighten the emotional power of certain scenes. I was unfamiliar with Derek Luke going into it, but I also admired his work and thought he was able to carry the film well, even in the final act where Washington's character was mostly absent. Though I wasn't familiar with many of the actors who played smaller parts, I thought they were fine as well. Overall, I didn't have any issues with a particular cast member.
As far as its story goes, Antwone Fisher is a character study on the titular character, which explores how he grew up, the many hardships he faced, and the way they made him violent later on. While a lot of the film consists of flashbacks to his childhood, it also spends a decent amount of time detailing how his various sessions with Dr. Davenport influenced his behavior, which is detailed through various people who either help or hinder him, like his relationship with Cheryl, the various people he runs into who provoke him into fights, or his trouble with fitting into various events he attends. This led to a handful of powerful moments which kept me on board throughout the film.
I don't think every scene hit its mark though. For instance, the reunion of Antwone and his mother felt rather brief and not as powerful as it should've been. Also, Davenport telling Antwone that their time together helped him to confront his own demons fell flat as, while Davenport's conflict with his wife was certainly made clear, his own road to recovery wasn't fleshed out enough for me to buy their final conversation. In spite of these occasional missteps though, I did enjoy the story a decent bit, if not loving it per se.
Overall, I enjoyed this film quite a bit. Sure, it's a rather straightforward story and not every beat of it landed, but many other aspects did and the excellent twin performances from Washington and Luke helped to heighten the emotional resonance of the film.