Fences, film review: Feel the pain as Denzel Washington and Viola Davis take centre stage

Davis and Washington are so good any reservations about the film seem to melt away, says Charlotte O'Sullivan
Charlotte O'Sullivan22 November 2017

Viola Davis, presenting Meryl Streep with a lifetime achievement award at this year’s Golden Globes, said: “You make me feel that what I have in me — my body, my face, my age — is enough.” Which suggests the actress has sometimes doubted her own awesomeness and maybe explains why she’s so convincing as Rose Maxson, a housewife in Fifties Pittsburgh, whose heart breaks when she discovers that what she hoped was enough, isn’t.

Rose’s husband Troy (Denzel Washington), a charming, moody garbage collector, can’t let the past rest in peace. As a child he was bullied by his dad. In his twenties his baseball career was nipped in the bud by racist whites.

Troy’s grip on his own family is sometimes playful, sometimes painfully tight. And he lies (as much to himself as others). Naturally, Washington is in heaven. The beautiful actor, reliably in virtuous mode, positively glows when exploring amorphous vice. As a director he’s less assured. Fences is based on a brilliant 1983 play by August Wilson, which was revived on Broadway in 2010 and won Tony acting awards for Washington and Davis. For his third directing gig Washington keeps things simple. Some people welcome faithful adaptations but to me they’re like a gorgeous rose with no smell.

Gifted film-makers create unique images (see Arsenic and Old Lace, A Streetcar Named Desire, Lantana, Hedwig and the Angry Inch). Washington is an actor with a camera, which is different.

Nor does Wilson’s phrase-making always hit the spot. The supporting characters (namely Troy’s brain-damaged brother and his youngest son) are somewhat one-note, while a couple of plot turns, including a death, are so convenient they all-but creak.

Yet such reservations seem irrelevant every time Washington and Davis take centre stage. This is a portrait of a doomed marriage that allows its stars to explode. Both have been nominated for Oscars. The only mystery is why Davis is in the Best Supporting Actress category as opposed to Best Actress. Troy adores Rose, yet insists on viewing her as his subordinate; the Oscars voters seem to have made the same mistake.

If the 51-year-old actress wins the award it will hopefully lead to her getting a part that’s incontrovertibly big. Perhaps she could even take a leaf out of Washington’s book and become a director. Streep, who once called Davis “gigantically gifted”, went on to say, “My god, someone give her a movie!” Wouldn’t it be cool if Davis grabbed one for herself?

Cert 12A, 139 mins

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