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In the backyard of the Pittsburgh home he shares with his wife, Rose (Viola Davis), and their son, Cory (Denzel Washington), garbage collector Troy Maxson (Denzel Washington) holds court once a week on payday (Jovan Adepo). Troy is accompanied by his two best friends, Bono (Stephen Henderson), a coworker whom he has known for decades, and a bottle of gin, which Troy has also known for decades, at all times. Both are excellent listeners, and there’s nothing that Troy enjoys more than having a captive audience in his presence. Rose walks out onto the porch when Troy’s stories begin to veer too far into fiction (at one point, Troy reminisces about wrestling with Death itself), and he laughs as Rose calls him out on his nonsense. Troy cuddles with her, hurling her the raunchiest lines of dialogue he can muster in her general direction. When Troy is alone, he is occasionally joined by his eldest son, Lyons (Russell Hornsby), who needs money, or his disabled war veteran brother, Gabe (Mykelt Williamson), who has recently moved away from Troy’s house in a defiant display of his independence. The course of one’s life is a series of routines that culminate in death. Troy Maxson is getting closer to his wrestling partner with each paycheck.
In August Wilson’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play “Fences,” this repeatedly occurring scenario serves as the basis for the plot. The film “Fences,” which premiered on Broadway 29 years ago, is being released in theaters thanks to a screenplay written by the late playwright himself. Wilson, who has won two Pulitzer Prizes and whose ten-play magnum opus, “The Pittsburgh Cycle,” (of which “Fences” is the sixth work) has established himself as one of the greatest American playwrights, alongside Eugene O’Neill, Edward Albee, and Tennessee Williams, has earned his rightful place among the country’s greatest playwrights. Throughout Wilson’s cycle of plays, the theme of African-American life is explored throughout the twentieth century, with each play taking place in a different decade. The film “Fences” is set in the 1950s, but the time period does not indicate when the material was created. However, given the current political climate, viewers may be surprised to learn that the American working class is comprised of people from all over the country, not just those from the Midwest and the White majority.
It is Wilson’s plays that work so well as live theater because they are rich, poetic and wordy affairs that are tinged with music, the magical nature of myth, and symbolic elements. Because theater is an intimate medium, the general consensus when it comes to translating plays to the screen is to “open up” the play, which frequently results in the destruction of the work’s natural fabric. The most impressive aspect of Denzel Washington’s direction in this production is that he doesn’t immediately introduce the characters. Instead, he widens the visual frame in which the players are placed. Both he and the film’s cinematographer, Charlotte Bruus Christensen, make use of the entire screen in order to occasionally dwarf the characters in their backyard setting, which serves as the film’s primary setting. At other times, the tight framing creates a sense of claustrophobia that is almost suffocating in its tightness. In the quiet visual architecture of this film, there is clear evidence that careful thought has been put into it; there are several visual motifs that support the themes in Wilson’s words, and not once does a character appear to be in the incorrect location. During a scene between Bono and Troy, in which Bono warns Troy of impending ruin, the actors are positioned at the bottom right of the frame, while rubble and an empty field fill the majority of the screen symbolically.
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But, perhaps most importantly, Washington understands that the screenplay is the film’s most important character. As soon as a film has actors who are this committed to speaking their lines, to the point where it appears as if they are turning themselves inside out with anguish, the camera is always exactly where it needs to be—it is right alongside them, listening with as much attention as we as audience members are paying attention. This style of direction, which evokes a bygone era when masters such as Billy Wilder and Sidney Lumet plied their trades, is now considered to be a lost art. Despite the fact that ostentatious, flashy direction was once thought to be the key to creating great drama, Wilder firmly believed that “if something is said to be well-directed, that is proof that it is not.” Washington recognizes this, and his commitment to his actors’ craft makes “Fences” a much more powerful film as a result. When Viola Davis is demonstrating how deeply her heart is breaking, the camera does not need to be competing for your attention with her performance.
Fences Quiz
“Fences” brings in the majority of the cast from its Tony Award-winning 2010 revival (which I have seen). Other actors who have returned to their roles include Henderson, Hornby, and Williamson. Washington and Davis were both nominated for Tony Awards for their performances in the show. As a result of their familiarity with the characters, they deliver a slew of outstanding performances. Williamson has the most difficult role: his war-damaged Gabriel is the most theatrically and symbolically significant character in the play. Gabriel, a man with a metal plate in his head who received a government disability check that enabled Troy to purchase his home, believes he is the messenger of God, who is depicted as a trumpet player in many Negro spirituals, according to Troy. Williamson humanizes this character by portraying his delusions as if they were real rather than made fun of. He is firm in his convictions, and as the final scene of the film demonstrates, he may not be entirely wrong.
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Troy’s relationship with Cory, which is based on Wilson’s common theme of legacy, serves as the fuel for “Fences.” Despite the fact that Cory is eligible for a college scholarship as a result of his football abilities, Troy is opposed to the idea, primarily because of his own failed sporting ambitions. Even though Troy was a fantastic baseball player in the Negro Leagues during the time period prior to Jackie Robinson (whom Troy despises), he never achieved his dreams of playing in the major leagues. It is not lost on us that Troy is denied success in baseball, which is commonly referred to as “America’s Pastime.” Baseball serves as the perfect metaphor for the American Dream, and Troy is denied success in baseball. It was segregated, much like the America of Troy’s day, and demanded that Blacks understand their place in society. It would be a happy occasion for the majority of fathers to learn that their son wishes to follow in their footsteps, especially in sports, and even more so if one’s legacy could potentially be extended or exceeded. Troy’s brutal pig-headedness, on the other hand, drives an irreparable wedge between the two. As part of his big confrontation scene, newcomer Adepo squares off against his scene-stealing director, almost outshining him in the process.
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Troy is a role that is tailor-made for Washington’s “Denzel”-isms, and he excels in it. Instead of the open vein of terror that Troy’s brilliant creator, James Earl Jones, maintained throughout his performance, Washington covers his dark side with a charm that is as sticky as flypaper. In addition to the obvious reason that society demanded that a woman have a husband, he makes it easy to understand why Rose would fall in love with him—and stay with him. “Fences” presents Troy with mountains of dialogue to climb, and the quick-witted Washington leaps over them, tailoring his delivery to his familiar style of speech. Troy’s use of the n-word is particularly noteworthy for its offensiveness. It is not surprising that Troy would use the phrase given the time period, but Washington uses the phrase differently depending on who is receiving it. It’s a term of endearment when it comes to Bono, and Bono returns it just as easily. While Troy hurls it at Cory during the famous speech that takes up Act 1, Scene 3, he does so with the ferocity of a klansman (“N—ger, as long as you’re in my house, make sure you end your sentences with the word ‘Sir'”).
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Viola Davis, not to be outdone, brings her own arsenal of tricks to the table. Nobody cries as much as Davis does onscreen, and if you were moved by the clip from the trailer, you should be aware that the actual scene is much longer and even more devastating in real life. It’s almost unwatchable because it’s so painful to watch. The film “Fences” is particularly unendurable for anyone who grew up under the strict supervision of a strict taskmaster. Davis’ Rose, on the other hand, serves as the film’s barometer, measuring how much we can tolerate Troy. Despite the fact that she is constantly pointing out how wrong he is, she cares for him and works hard to soften his rough edges. However, as soon as he breaks his contract with her, the game is over. The ice covering Davis’ delivery of the line “you a womanless man” to Troy may have been thicker than a nuclear warhead, but it couldn’t be melted by a nuclear warhead.
In “Fences,” we learn how our environment shapes us and how our parents can’t help but mess us up in some way, no matter how well-intentioned they are, just as their parents had done to them. This is what we have left as a species. Either we indoctrinate ourselves against the things that we perceived as wrong with our parents, or we contract their disease and pass it on to our children and grandchildren. It is Washington’s use of crosses as a visual motif throughout his film, whether on the wall or in the chain Rose wears around her neck, that serves as a visual reminder of the greatest father-son story ever told. Additionally, this notion is reflected in the script, as one of the most brutally honest things Rose tells Cory near the film’s conclusion is that he’s exactly like Troy. Especially in light of Cory’s speech about how he tried everything he could to rid his soul of Troy’s terrifying influence. That Cory has come to accept this truth, as exemplified by his co-opting of the song Troy used to sing, is both heartbreaking and beautiful in its simplicity. Whether we like it or not, this will be our lasting legacy.
For more personality quizzes check this: Fist Fight Quiz.
