TILL
Starring: Danielle Deadwyler, Jalyn Hall, Frankie Faison, Whoopi Goldberg, Sean Patrick Thomas, John Douglas Thompson, Haley Bennett, and Marc Collins
Director: Chinonye Chukwu
ADRIANO
There was a very fine line that writer/director Chinonye Chukwu had to walk for Till, given how disturbingly tragic the subject matter is, and thankfully, that line was walked wonderfully. This film isn’t an easy watch in the slightest, but Chukwu did a wonderful job of making it digestible for audiences by focusing not only on the incident itself, but also the good that can come from horrific tragedy. Mamie Till’s story is incredibly powerful, and Danielle Deadwyler delivered her story with an earth-shattering and breathtaking performance that shook me to my very core. Overall, a tough but worthwhile experience.
JACOB
The scripting of Till may feel rather conventional, but sometimes, all a good story needs is to be well-told, and the legacy of Mamie Till-Mobley as portrayed in this film is a sacred one to tell. Deftly handled with careful direction from Chinonye Chukwu, not to mention starring a best-yet Danielle Deadwyler, the film wisely refuses to indulge the white brutality of its central event, yet still confronts the audience with the consequence of it. The score and sound editing are its biggest strengths in that respect, and while those awards chances are tentative, Deadwyler is a surefire contender for a Best Actress Oscar.
