Nickel Boys (2024)

Racism Drama That Has a Distracting Style - Nickel Boys review by GI

I suspect this is a film that will divide people, not the subject matter as much as the film's first person POV filming style and the often bizarre editing and structure.
Set mostly in the 60s showing TV newsreel of the first moon landing for example to create a comparison between the advancement and achievements of America and the film's main story in a brutal Florida reform school for boys where black boys are routinely beaten, killed and written off as runaways. Early on the film shows the different treatment of black inmates to white inmates as this is a film about stark racism.
It follows Elwood (Ethan Herisse), a bright young man on his way to a new school but who inadvertently accepts a lift in a stolen car and in an obvious miscarriage of justice is sent to the farm like reform school. The film charts his friendship with Turner (Brandon Wilson) as they deal with bullying, beatings and try to find some ways to survive the experience culminating in them attempting to escape. There's a twist at the end.
Unfortunately this important and dramatic story gets lost in the jarring style of the film which I found very distracting and ultimately off putting. For me it led to the main thrust of the narrative being marred by my trying to keep track of what was going on. So in my opinion the film whilst ambitious is too flawed to work.
A shame as it had great potential to highlight a forgotten and shameful part of America's racist history.