The Emmy-winning series When They See Us (2019) is a prime example of young men of color, teenagers in fact, being sent to prison, the horror and effect of it, as well as the aftermath and difficulty faced when they get out of incarceration. That show was based on a true story. Writer-director Rashad Fett's feature debut is fictional but is certainly inspired by real world events. Frett even incorporates real world interviews into the end credits. Those interviews could be the jumping off point for a documentary. This film isn't nonfiction, but it's clear that Frett utilizes a lot of nonfiction or documentary-style techniques in the filmmaking here. There's a lot of handheld shots for example, but there is an intimacy to the cinematography that places us into the shoes and head of the protagonist so extremely well.
Stephan James (If Beale Street Could Talk and Race) stars as Ricardo Smith, a 30-year-old, Black man, living in Hartford, Connecticut. He was recently released from prison. It's only been a month. He was locked up for 15 years, which means he was only a teenager when he was convicted and has spent half his life as an inmate. There's a lot that he doesn't know or hasn't experienced. He's never been with a woman before. He's presumably a virgin. Yet, his priority isn't finding a girl. It's finding a job. This film details the pressures and various issues of doing so.
Sheryl Lee Ralph (Abbott Elementary and Moesha) co-stars as Joanne, the parole officer assigned to Ricardo. She knows that he's the son of an immigrant from the Caribbean. By her accent, Joanne is from the Caribbean too, which might be why she has his case. There appears to be a personal connection between her and Ricardo's family. It could just be that she cares too much, but she does tell Ricardo that she's not his friend or his mama, but she does care. She's very strict and very tough on Ricardo though. She certainly adds the pressure, requiring him to attend meetings and meet other requirements that cause an inordinate amount of stress.
That stress probably isn't conveyed on screen to the same degree as a Safdie brothers film. However, this film gets to a point, especially in the second half, that approaches the level of a Safdie brothers film. The anxiety that builds puts you on the edge of your seat. That anxiety is the perfect expression of what Ricardo feels, so it is great empathy for what the character is experiencing. However, it's not just the protagonist. The film also gives breath to the other characters encircling him.
Maliq Johnson (Grand Army and When They See Us) plays James, the brother of Ricardo. He's younger but in a lot of ways he's more mature than Ricardo. James can act like a rowdy teenager, but James has a job and a car. He's also more experienced with girls and sex than his older brother. James even has to teach his older brother how to drive. It's an interesting dynamic because James has been free, while his brother has been incarcerated and forced into a kind of arrested development, literally.
Simba Kali (Mississippi Damned and 3rd Rock from the Sun) plays Winsome, the mother of Ricardo. She's a very religious woman. She can also be quite strict as well. Like many Black mothers, she doesn't want her sons to fall victim to street life or gang life. She doesn't want to see her sons go to prison and then get caught up in the system. She wants to protect them, and being in prison, she knows that there was no way to protect her son from what happens inside and even the aftermath of when he gets out. She tries, but she gets frustrated, wanting to give up at times, but she gets an incredibly powerful moment where she has to drag her son who has become this big, muscular dude because she knows if she gives up on her son, her son could die. It's probably one of the best moments I've seen on the silver screen.
Andrene Ward-Hammond (Sinners and 61st Street) plays Cheryl, a fellow, former inmate whom Ricardo meets at his required, group therapy sessions. She's struggling with custody issues. Unlike Ricardo, she has a daughter or a child of whom she doesn't have custody. Earlier this year, the film Reminders of Him (2026) deals with a woman who gets released from prison and struggles with getting custody of her daughter back. This film only gives glimpses of Cheryl's struggle. Yet, the film still makes her such a well-drawn character that even though she only pops up here and there, she feels more fleshed out than a lot of characters in a lot of Hollywood films.
Sean Nelson (The Wood and Fresh) plays Terrence, the friend of Ricardo who is trying to help him get a job, but is also the one responsible for him getting put in prison in the first place. There's a complicated but powerful dynamic that makes his character also standout than he might have otherwise, given such little screen time. Same goes for Imani Lewis (Star and The Get Down) who plays Jaz, a single mother that Ricardo meets, as he has a side-hustle of being a barber. Ricardo only has a couple of interactions with Jaz, but she pops in her own way. It's a truly great ensemble. Many of whom were in the 2023 short film that was the basis for this feature. This truly is a great film.
In full disclosure, the 2023 short film starred Parish Bradley in the titular role. Bradley also makes a cameo appearance in this feature. I worked for a filmmaker who employed Bradley in a series for which I contributed material. I was also on set with Bradley for an episode in that series.
Not Rated but contains language, sexual situations, and brief violence.
Running Time: 1 hr. and 46 mins.
Available on VOD.
