Fruitvale Stations

Gerald Mallison 6/20/17

Fruitvale Station is the dramatic recreation of the Oscar Grant shooting on December 31, 2008. The movie revolves around Oscar Grant, played by Michael B. Jordan, living his final hours before the tragic events on New Year's day. Revealing his: time in prison for selling marijuana, sketchy relationship with his family, and an ongoing trouble to maintain jobs or pay the rent. During his mother's birthday, Oscar talks to his mother who suggests that he and his baby mama take the train downtown to attend a New Year's Eve extravaganza.  This seems like a good idea at first, and actually makes for a good movie plot on it’s own.  Unfortunately that’s not what the movie was named and made after.  While coming home from the party, Oscar and his party’s train are pulled over and questioned by the police for a fight that occurred.  After Oscars’ party resists being brought to the station from the police, the cops decide to take the law into their own hands and handcuff Oscar and his friends.  This then leads to one of the officers “mistaking” his taser for his gun and shoots Oscar Grant in a subway station in front of the public.  The majority of this movie goes over what he experienced before the moment of the subway, and really does kind of speed over everything after the shooting.  The movie does contain good symbolism such as Oscar holding a dead dog with blood on his shirt (of course foreshadowing hi certain death in the end).  Another example is his daughter not wanting him to leave, unaware of the horrible fate her father has coming.  Even though I like this movie, their are flaws that can be seen and easily corrected.  Such as the overbearing amount of foreshadowing to the point where it’s kinda beat over the head that Oscar is going to die.  I would also have liked if they showed the actual death footage at the end of the movie, this way the foreshadows are less blunt and obvious.  In conclusion while the ending of the movie is very obvious, the journey this movie makes you go through is grade A and is a must watch movie.