Just Mercy

You would think that in my old age I would recognize a setup when I see one but sadly, I keep getting seduced by tasty drinks, loud music, and BBQ. What can I say, it’s in my genes! This past weekend I got frat boy drunk. But not in the annoying and sexually assaulting way you would normally associate with such a statement, I was Black frat boy drunk which is something totally different. What do I mean by this? Well this weekend was Free Week, meaning that there were a ton of venues that offered free music; so if you walked into a spot and the music sucked, you could easily walk right back out and hit up another spot  with little to no investment on your part. But of course, you cannot do all this bar hopping without at the very least sampling the drinks they offer in each establishment.

Well suffice it to say that I didn’t realize how many bars I popped into and how many drinks I had until it was too late. It was at the point that I was eating pizza and shouting the lyrics of Ice Cube and Dr. Dre’s Serial Killer that it occurred to me that this was the confession Austin PD had been waiting for all along! This is all they needed to incarcerate yet another Black man. I ran as fast as I could while throwing away my hoodie and shouting “I have asthma” (I don’t have asthma btw) to anyone in sight to ensure that I made it home safely!

Once I made it home, I figured I was finally in the right mindset to see the latest drama Just Mercy, the story of a Black man who was on death row for a crime he didn’t commit. Now I know that I just tried to make light of what life is like for a Black man in America but you must do these types of things to keep from crying. And sadly, you will do plenty of that while watching this film. Trust me, I had the same questions and concerns you have when I walked into this film. What makes this any different from the dozens of court room dramas we’ve seen on racism before? Well when you come to the realization that there are dozens of stories out there about mafia life and white girls having sex in NYC, it’s totally okay for you to listen to yet another story about racism, legalized slavery, and an unfair justice system.

What makes this story different is that most of it doesn’t occur in a court setting. The reason for that is because most of the cases social justice activist and death row public defender Bryan Stevenson (Michael B. Jordan) takes on don’t have enough evidence to even make it to trial. But as Walter McMillian (Jamie Foxx) points out to Bryan, it doesn’t matter because the second you’re born with this skin color in Alabama, you’re guilty of whatever they want you to be. That is unless you play football for Nick Saban, then you exonerated for at least four years (my personal commentary not Walter’s). This is the world we live in.

Bryan is a young Harvard graduate who recently passed the bar. He decided to take on cases like this because while he was an intern, he met and connected with an inmate who was on death row who happened to be the same age as him. And it was in that moment he realized that most of these people don’t get or can’t afford proper representation. Now there are one or two moments that, on the surface, appear to be a bit preachy, especially if you’re pro death penalty, but as they tell their stories, you realize that this movie accomplishes what good movies should accomplish; and that is to tell the stories  that rarely get heard. Trust me when I tell you that you don’t need to hear about how Lena Dunham banged yet another hipster in Brooklyn at least for a week. For just a moment, take a look at the world through the eyes of someone from a different culture and background.

There are quite a few gut-wrenching moments in this film; from Bryan witnessing his first execution to listening to the heartbreaking story of how an inmate’s childhood tragedy was used to manipulate not only him but the outcome of Walter’s trial. But what’s truly scary is how natural being a racist is to some of these actors. It’s great to see Rafe Spall go from being the annoying teenager in Shaun of the Dead to the unscrupulous district attorney in Oscar worthy films but boy it sure seemed like a seamless transition for him. And I know that’s a credit to his acting ability but man, you could at least see Leo struggling with his role as Calvin Candie in Django Unchained. But for Rafe it seemed like he was being his natural self, much like Samuel Jackson in Django as the race betraying Uncle Tom, Stephen. I can still hear Sam as he shouted “We have to get these mf’n n’s off the mf’n Underground Railroad as fast as we mf’n can! And yes, they deserve to die and I hope they burn in hell!”

Anyway, if you want to open your mind and take a look into how the justice system is flawed, see flawless performances by actors at the top of their game, and be taken on an emotional ride, I strongly suggest that you see this film. I give this film a rating of FRESH!