Blu-ray Review: Fruitvale Station

Release Date: January 14, 2014
Rating: R
Running Time: 85 Minutes

Winner of both the Grand Jury Prize for dramatic feature and the Audience Award for U.S. dramatic film at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, director Ryan Coogler’s FRUITVALE STATION follows the true story of Oscar Grant (Michael B. Jordan), a 22-year-old Bay Area resident who wakes up on the morning of December 31, 2008 and feels something in the air. Not sure what it is, he takes it as a sign to get a head start on his resolutions: being better son to his mother (Octavia Spencer), whose birthday falls on New Year’s Eve, being a better partner to his girlfriend Sophina (Melonie Diaz), who he hasn’t been completely honest with as of late, and being a better father to Tatiana (Ariana Neal), their beautiful four year-old daughter. Crossing paths with friends, family and strangers, Oscar starts out well, as the day goes on, he realizes that changes are not going to come easily. His resolve takes a tragic turn, however, when BART officers shoot him in cold blood at the Fruitvale subway stop on New Year’s Day. Oscar’s life and tragic death would shake the Bay Area – and the entire nation – to its very core.

There was a lot of buzz surrounding Fruitvale Station and for good reason. Based on a true story, Fruitvale Station follows 22-year-old Oscar Grant on both the New Year’s Eve before the final fatal New Year’s Eve and that very Eve that impacted the lives of not only Grant’s loved ones but an entire community, later the nation, and soon the world. It’s so easy to write people off, for so many reasons but when you take away the racial fear/panic that made this man a target, you’re forced to see a human being and to have this chance to tell his story, to get to know the person behind the victim, this film is very special. Moving.

Oscar Grant was struggling to get by, like so many Americans can relate to but he had promise and he wanted to be a better person, he wanted to do right. So to watch the beginning of that transformation, that road to redemption be cut short, it’s really powerful. The pacing of the film might be slow for some but I found the build up to be perfect. The calm before the storm. Once it gets to the climax, your emotions will rise to ten in a split second. It’s easily the most emotionally gripping scene of any 2013 movie. Everything is intense. The weight of Oscar’s wrongful death and the treatment of those taken aside follows you before you even press play but its heaviest in the thick of it. Naturally.

Now I am a huge fan of Michael B. Jordan’s work so my word is biased but I think he did a phenomenal job as did the entire cast and crew. Octavia Spencer will break you. My God. The portrayals were raw, the directing wasn’t glamorous. The storytelling, riveting. Fruitvale Station is captivating because of the truth behind it but what makes this film so special, this passionate cast and crew so lovable and appreciated is that this film brought this story the light of day it deserves as so many had not even heard about it before. So if you know someone who needs to be familiarized with this story, please, please, please pick this up for them. Educate yourself and spread tolerance awareness. Spread love. Spread the message of what happens when ignorance has authority. If there’s one independent film from 2013 that you must see, it’s Fruitvale Station.

Bonus Features:

*Fruitvale Station: The Story of Oscar Grant (20 minutes) – In this feature, the cast, crew, and other notable figures talk about everything from the reception of the film at the Sundance Film Festival and Cannes Film Festival and comparisons with Grant and Trayvon Martin to the story of Oscar Grant and telling the story in the most honest way possible. What a feature. If you were touched by the film and Grant’s story, you will continue to be touched by this bonus feature.

Appearing in This Feature:
Cast Members, Michael B. Jordan, Octavia Spencer, Melonie Diaz
Writer/Director, Ryan Coogler
Producers, Forest Whitaker, Nina Yang Bongiovi
The Huffington Post & CNBC Contributor, Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Civil Rights Activist & Lawyer, Connie Rice
Common, Russell Simmons, Edward James Olmos

*Q&A with Cast and Filmmakers (25 minutes) – This Q&A is a fantastic extension of the message of the film and everyone who owns a copy of this Blu-ray/DVD should watch. If it were possible for this to automatically play after the film, I’d want it to. Please watch.

Own Fruitvale Station on Blu-ray and DVD today.