Probably most of us started off with great dreams only to
see them dashed at some point or another.
Yet it’s difficult to imagine what a black man approaching the age of
fifty must reflect when raising his family in a large metropolitan area back during
the 1950s. The plot of Fences centers upon such a character,
and for the most part tells the story honestly.
Troy Maxson (Denzel Washington) works as a garbage man
during this period in Pittsburgh. Troy
grew up in the south and moved north to escape his abusive father. At one time he was a promising baseball
player, but his baseball days faced interruption due to a stint in prison. And by the time he got out, he was too old to
play in the big leagues which will only then beginning to recruit black talent.
Troy in some senses is like a Walter Mitty character. He often makes up the stories he tells for
the amusement of others, but there are instances when he seemingly believes
what he is saying. And because he
believes his own lies, he can never truly apologize for his mistakes. On the other hand, he is a realist
understanding that he is going to pay a great price for the mistakes he does
make.
Troy has a wife and two sons. As the film begins, his wife Rose (Viola
Davis) has been married to him for eighteen years. Rose is used to Troy’s antics and loves him
deeply. Troy, in his own way, loves Rose
in return, but that does not prevent him from having an affair with another
woman resulting in this woman becoming pregnant. The woman that Troy had the affair with dies
in childbirth after delivering a healthy daughter named Raynell. Troy convinces Rose to help him raise the
young girl.
Troy also has a brother named Gabe (Mykelti Williamson), who
Troy deeply cares for. Gabe suffered head
injuries during the war which leave him extremely simple in the mind. Troy for the most part does what he can to
help Gabe out.
The two sons, on the other hand, are ambivalent in their
attitudes towards their father. Both
respect him greatly, but both also fear him because Troy can be a hard man. Lyons (Russell Hornsby) was born to another
woman Troy knew before he went to prison.
Whenever Lyons comes to visit the family, Troy rightly guesses that he
is there only to borrow money.
Troy’s relationship with his youngest son, Cory (Jovan Adepo),
is much more complex. Cory is in high
school and shows promise as a football player.
Troy is not supportive of Cory playing football and instead insists that
he find a job and work for his money.
Troy appears unable to show affection for his youngest son, despite the
son doing very little wrong. Yet Troy constantly
demands that Cory show him the ultimate respect. Troy challenges his youngest son, and
sometimes the challenges border on bullying.
Troy dies of a heart attack while swinging at the baseball
he attached to the end of a rope.
Throughout the movie, he swung at the baseball as if to take out his
frustrations regarding his thwarted dreams.
Raynell by then is around five-years-old. Rose lovingly looks after her. Lyons is facing imprisonment for passing bad
checks. Cory is by then a member of the
marines long after having a falling out with his father.
It is an intense film much like a prior film Washington
starred in called A Soldier’s Story. And while Fences
consists almost exclusively of a black cast, it symbolizes the plight of almost
every man frustrated by what life provides.
The confrontational scenes Troy has with his sons are particularly
effective because the lessons he teaches are not always pleasant ones.
It’s obvious to anyone seeing the film that it was based on
a play – a play by August Wilson. Sometimes
plays do not always translate well into film, and this occasionally occurs in Fences.
Troy’s occasional references about demons and death would probably come
off better on the stage. And the ending
of this film with the remaining characters looking up at the sky while the sun
peaks through the clouds is forced symbolism.
Like its chief character, the 138-minute film contains both
greatness and significant flaws. With
the exception of the acting of Viola Davis, the film is for the most part a
one-man show starring the film’s director, Denzel Washington. Through the acting of its main star, there is
seldom a single moment you do not see the character’s drive and spirit. The personalities of the two sons are never
fully developed and are mainly present to playoff of Washington’s role. The character of Gabe provides some pathos as
well as comic relief. Rose is the only
character in the film that truly has the gumption to oppose Troy in anything.
Yet as Rose mentions towards the film’s end, Troy is in so many
respects a big man. While he limits
himself by his inability to always see the truth (thus the film name Fences), he also drives himself. There are only a few instances where he feels
sorry for himself, and this never lasts long.
He lives with the consequences of his actions, and he does his best to
pay his own way.
July 30, 2017
© Robert S. Miller 2017
