Il coraggio di lottare

"Crown Heights" (2017 release; 103 min) brings the story of Colin Warner. "Based on a true story" we are informed as the movie opens, it is "April 10,1980" and we her a gun shot, as people as running away. We get to know Colin, an immigrant from Trinidad, Colin is a petty thief, easily getting into trouble as he hangs out in Crown Heights (Brooklyn).. That evening, he is picked up by the cops and at the precinct, he is urges to confess to a murder he didn't commit. So why are the cops after Colin then? Colin is denied jail, and before we know it, his trial starts... At this point we are less than 15 min. into the movie but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: this movie is written and directed by Matt Ruskin, best known for his documentary "The Hip Hop Project", While "Crown Heights" is not a documentary, it might as well have been one. "Crown Heights" focuses on the grave injustice that befell Colin Warner, convicted of a crime he didn't commit when cops and the DA's office manipulate (if not worse) various witnesses and bystanders. Just when it seems it can't get any worse, it does. But the movie tries to make a bigger point and at that, it succeeds only in part. As the years roll on, we see various politicians (G.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, etc.) speak out harshly against crime (culminating with Clinton's "three strikes you're out" crime bill). You may agree or disagree with such an approach, but that of course has in se nothing to do with locking up an innocent man as a result of police and DA misconduct. Social injustice is a very important topic, but is "Crown Heights" actually a good movie? I'm happy to say that it is. Even though you get a sense midway through as to how it will all play out, it was riveting watching from start to end. The no-names cast is mostly excellent, in particular Keith Stanfield as Colin (he portrayed Snoop Dogg in "Straight Outta Compton" a few years back.

"Crown Heights" premiered at this year's Sundance Film Festival to positive buzz. It finally opened at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati. The Thursday early evening screening turned out to be a private screening, as I was literally the only person in the theater. No matter, "Crown Heights" is a good movie, with an even more important social cause, and I would readily suggest you seek this out, be it in the theater, on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray.

Having gone into this movie knowing nothing about this case, I must say this movie captivated me and kept me intrigued throughout the entire movie. As the movie progressed I found myself sitting up in bed, not daring to look away from the screen. It pulled all of my emotions into it making me angry, sad, excited, happy.. and I found myself yelling at the TV time and time again out of frustration. And being based on a true story and getting to see some of the live footage at the end of the film was the cherry on top.

This is a truly fantastic movie that I cannot recommend enough. It will pull you in and make you truly care for the characters. When the characters cried, I cried, when the characters were mad, I was mad. I've always believed that a great movie is one that makes you forget that you're watching a movie, and this one did exactly that. Highly recommend watching this movie.

Based on the true story of Colin Warner who was wrongfully convicted of murder and spent more than 20 years in jail and his friend Carl King who devoted himself to prove Colin's innocence Crown Heights is a powerful film that shows how the system fails the people who need it the most. Having experience with making documentaries Matt Ruskin knows how to not make the actors be melodramatic and yet succeeds to make the viewers on the verge of tears. Lakeith Stanfield is excellent as Colin portraying the teenage confusion to the matured man. The focus of the film is mostly given to the failing judiciary and how it affects the people. There have been films dealing with such subjects before but the significance of such films has not diminished, these type of subjects are needed from time to time as a reminder about the world we live in.

Hope--- is my favorite word. This story is heartfelt and will touch your soul. It did mine.

Once again, the enormous weaknesses of a country's judicial and prison system are demonstrated. Once again, it is clear the level of poverty and misery of several black families, which survive as means of drug distribution in many cases. According to a statistic that appeared at the end of the film, there are more than 2.5 million convicts in the United States, of whom an estimated 120,000 are innocent. Imagine an innocent sentenced to life imprisonment, who returns the life lost in prison? That, if it is finally proven innocent, which does not always seem very likely. The plot of this film is a sharp nail to assimilate for those who proclaim the existence of another pleasant and unreal environment. Tyrannies and dictatorships without mercy are condemned, something very fair, but criticism of the imperfections of the so-called democracy is not accepted, it is scary to speak about it when it comes to gross violations of human rights. Congratulations to the director and the rest of the team that made this movie.