Nickel Boys: Seeing through other eyes

“The one thing Nickel taught me was how not to die.”

Nickel Boys, directed by RaMell Ross, is based on the Pulitzer Prize winning book The Nickel Boys, by Colson Whitehead. The story centers on a young man sent unjustly to a reformatory in the Jim Crow South. The story may be all too familiar, but the visual storytelling method Ross uses is all about giving us a new perspective.

Elwood Curtis (Ethan Herisse) is a promising high school student—so promising he’s about to begin early college classes. His teacher encourages his students to look beyond the way things are for Black at that time. Elwood has taken part in Civil Rights protests, and would like to take part in civil disobedience actions.

When he catches a ride offered by someone who stole a car, Elwood is sent to the Nickel Academy as a car thief. Nickel Academy is very difficult for the Black people who have been sent there. They work as slave labor in the field. Any infractions result in severe beating. If that isn’t enough, students just disappear.

Elwood makes a connection with Turner (Brandon Wilson), a boy who has seen the way the world works. He helps Elwood come to terms with life at Nickel, but Elwood continues to believe that justice can happen. In time, that belief will lead to trouble.

Visually, nearly the entire film is through Elwood’s eyes. It starts with a child looking up at a citrus tree, then a Christmas tree. In school, we see where Elwood is looking as his teacher talks. It isn’t until over a half hour into the film that we see what Elwood looks like—as he sees a photo of himself and a girlfriend. Occasionally, the camera switches to Turner’s point of view. There are also some bits of archival footage to show what was happening in the world.

There are also scenes that show an adult Elwood (Daveed Diggs), but we only see him from the rear. In time, that will be a clue into the twist that brings a final perspective to the film.

At the core, this is a film about the racial injustice that was so rampant during Jim Crow. It is also about the aftermath of that injustice and the legacy that continues to live on. Elwood’s idealism led him to think things would change if brought to light. Turner’s experience in the world led to a more cynical understanding that led him to act pragmatically.

While much of the film may seem (at least for white viewers) a bit of voyeurism into the past, the film uses its visual point of view and emotionally evocative music to bring us into the story in more visceral sense. We may be torn in how we react. Should Turner’s pragmatism at staying alive or Elwood’s idealism and sense of justice be our response?

In the end, that is the question that confronts the adult survivor of this film. Will he bear witness to the truth, even if it costs him the life he has built? Will we bear witness to the injustice that continues in our world?

Nickle Boys is in limited release.

Photos courtesy of Orion Pictures.