Rob Peace

Jay Will turns in an engaging enough effort here but I found the whole story just a bit lacking in substance. It's based on a true story, adapted by director Chiwetel Ejiofor who plays the father of the eponymous young lad. He's separated from his mother (Mary J. Blige) but seems to be on decent terms with them as he comes for a routine visit in his dilapidated old car. Quickly, a tragedy strikes and dad "Skeet" finds himself sent to prison for a double murder. It falls to son Rob to try to find a way to prove his innocence. Skip on a few years and we find this young man, highly adept at mathematics, proving his genius as he manages to get into the Ivy League thanks to some sponsorship from his prep school but again, he is constantly striving to find a way to extricate his dad from jail. It's his skills at chemistry that now serve a different purpose as he and a few colleagues develop a brand new revenue stream that makes him very popular amongst the student body (and mind) whilst raising the cash to fund his dad's appeal. Meantime, with their community gradually falling to wrack and ruin, he also hits on the idea of using some of his cash to kick-start refurbishment works on over 170 homes that have been abandoned or foreclosed upon to revitalise his community - but when the sub-prime crash hits the world it leaves him desperately exposed in more ways than one. When we get to the end of this film, it does make you look back and think a little about how society can contrive to thwart people with even the slightest degree of social ambition - even when is appears to be eminently commercially viable, but the problem here is that there's just way too much missing from the narrative. We skip ahead when we ought to be developing his character his situation. There is virtually nothing from the trial that convicted his father, for example. Peace is clearly a decent man of idealism, reduced to using the tools at his disposal to funds things way more permanent than a flashy car or some bling for his girl (Camilla Cabello) but again the storytelling leaves us to make too many assumptions about who did what back when and about his own, ostensibly victimless, crimes that risk compromising his long sought goals. Interestingly, this isn't a film that takes much of a racial stance. His colour seems not to have been especially relevant as his education progressed but in the end it was maybe just a short story that's undercooked here and skirts over too many of the issues it needed to fulfil it's promise. It's still worth a watch, but the telly will suit it fine.

Chiwetel Ejiofor's second directorial effort is an intense, real-life drama that manages to be a consistent film, but at times becomes overly pretentious.

With a conventional look by Chiwetel Ejiofor, both in its direction and in its script, we are faced with a film that keeps you totally connected to it, precisely because of the director's cleverness in using all the safe elements that enhance this drama and make it feel intense and moving, capturing a full life of its protagonist that invites us to feel part of a journey destined to give us a hard final blow.

In the acting department, an efficient Jay Will elegantly carries off his powerful lead performance, delivering sincerity in his character loaded with a portrait of a frustrated life and the places that bind it, which is amazingly complemented by a good supporting cast where Chiwetel Ejiofor once again demonstrates what a great actor he is.

I am left with the feeling of being in front of a fairly entertaining film, never too heavy, that invites us to follow Peace's life beyond a life full of complications that offers an authentic portrait of a person destined to fight against the constraints of a place, of moments, of decisions and of a complex life from the beginning.

A conventional, well-made drama, which has its high points and its low points, but which in its final sum ends up leaving the viewer with more sweet than bitter feelings.

Watched this at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival.

This movie is an example where just because an actor is very talented, doesn't mean they are worthy of directing movies. Chiwetel Ejiofor has directed "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind" which I thought was decent but "Rob Peace", despite having good intentions, falls short due to the weak narrative, uninteresting characters and repetitive structure.

The writing explores race conflicts and the system but the writing is cliched and too predictable to fully engage with. Many of the production designs and camerawork were okay but felt cheap. The performances from the cast members were a mix of some good and some pretty bad. Jay Will does a good job with his performance but the rest of the cast, especially Camila Cabello, were pretty bad and were provided with some really rough dialogue.

The direction from Ejiofor feels lifeless and lacking, the pacing is pretty weak, and the tone and atmospheres explored feel as if there was many themes trying to be explored, yet couldn't focus on one. I have read the original novel which the movie is based on and I feel that the movie is a weak adaptation of what made the novel pretty interesting.

Being my last movie from Sundance, it was a bit disappointing. I can see the good intentions here but it was weak.

It feels like the only thing the movie has in common with the book is its main character and his mother. Rather than doing the work of character development in the film, which would require reconciliation of the fact that Peace was a brilliant man who made choices that put him in high risk situations and ultimately cost him his life, the film spins a fable of a messianic, monogamous victim. There is no meaningful engagement with Peace's life after Yale, his travels (and travails) and the impacts he made on those around him. It's hard to understand how the author's wife produced a film that correlates so little with the book and in the end, feels like it does no real justice to the complexity of the short and tragic life of Robert Peace.

It was heartwarming and touching and uplifting and sad all wrapped up in one, but it was real, just so real and it was honesty. I mean this movie paints a picture of Rob Peace and the picture was the truth. They did nothing to hide who this guy was at all just laid out the cards the way they were delt.

The only thing that may have been off balance was the acting chops of Jay Will. Will as Peace was absolute dynamite! I grew to care for what he was portraying on film as if thought he was my freind! I just want to put on record that's exactly what Oscars are given out for.

Chiwetel Ejiofor just showcased his diversity of talent with this one. Great Actor, i knew that! But great writer and Director!? This is the type of filmmaking i want to see over and over again.

A must see!