Director: Ryan Cooglar.

Screenplay: Ryan Cooglar.

Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Octavia Spencer, Melonie Diaz, Ariana Neal, Ahna O’Reilly, Kevin Durand, Chad Michael Murray, Keenan Cooglar, Marjorie Crump-Shears, Trestin George, Joey Oglesby.

“I’m good, I’m good, I’m gonna be good“.

I have to admit that the true events that took place involving Oscar Grant on December 31st, 2009, weren’t all that familiar to me. I have vague memories of hearing something but there wasn’t very much UK media coverage about this day. As a result, I went into this film rather blind and for those that find themselves in the same situation as myself, I’d advise that they leave it that way. It makes the story all the more effective and hard-hitting but even if you are aware of this man and what happened, there’s still no denying how raw and effecting this film truly is.

22 year-old, Bay Area resident, Oscar Grant (Michael B.Jordan) has a bit of colourful past but he wants to change, so that he can be a better son to his mother (Octavia Spencer), a better partner to his girlfriend (Melonie Diaz) and, most importantly, a better father to his young daughter (Ariana Neal). However he hard he tries, though, his fate isn’t always in his own hands.

In the event of giving away too many details, I’ll try to avoid spoilers where I can here. I’m sure that by now, most people will be aware of how the events played out, either by reading others’ reviews or being aware of it first hand but it’s not my intention to reveal anything for those that are still in the dark. As previously mentioned, I knew very little about the story other than coming across some highly rated reviews (which I largely avoided) and that the film won the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival. These were enough to know that I had to check the film out. I’m really glad I did, but it also left me speechless. When the end credits were rolling, I sat in silence with the emotional weight almost too heavy to bare.

This is a heartfelt and harrowing story that benefits all the more from first time director Ryan Cooglar’s documentary like approach. There is a heavy sense of realism and the largely unknown cast, deliver fantastic performances. The real standout is, of course, a towering lead performance by Michael B. Jordan. The only time I’ve seen this actor was in 2012’s impressive found-footage film “Chronicle” but after this, I’m certain we’ll be seeing a lot more of him. This young actor is a real talent and he brings the requisite heart and commitment to portraying Oscar Grant. He makes sure that we empathise with his character – despite his personal flaws – and maintains the balance of a story that could easily have fell too far into sentiment or manipulation. Oscar Grant was a family man but he was by no means perfect. He struggled to provide for his family and had served time in prison for drug dealing, as well as possessing a temper that would often get him in trouble. Despite these failings, his heart always seemed in the right place and Jordan displays a whole myriad of emotions to capture this flawed individual striving for a better life. Will Jordan be remembered when the Academy Award nominations are handed out? Probably not, but I certainly wouldn’t complain if he did feature. He delivers one of the performances of the year here.

With all this in mind, it would seem that this is a downbeat and depressing film. It’s not. For the most part, we are given an intimate glimpse into this man’s life and there are many positives to be taken from it. The approach is naturalistic and never comes across as intrusive or with a heavy heart. That is… until the devastatingly, visceral and emotional finale.

With a solid, multi-dimensional, leading performance that’s reminiscent of a young Denzel Washington, Michael B. Jordan will not go unrecognised. Nor will the very talented writer-director Ryan Cooglar who, in his debut, delivers one the best and most harrowing films of 2013.

Mark Walker

Trivia: Besides Octavia Spencer another Oscar-winning actor, Forest Whitaker was instrumental as the film’s producer in getting it off the ground. He became a very early supporter of writer/director Ryan Coogler after seeing his film work in college.