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Crown Heights (2017) Reviewed by Jay

United States, 11 August 2017

 

Jay´s Review

Now THIS is a true friend. When an 18-year-old boy is wrongfully convicted of murder in 1980 by cops who simply wanted to clear the crime from their books, his friend sets out on an epic journey to free him and absolve his name.

 

Writer/director Matt Ruskin ("Booster") has taken a true event and written an R-rated scripted version of what could have been a documentary. The discouraging things that happen to our poor fellow could not be made up. Both the real killer AND the witness who perjured himself (and admitted it) are out of jail long before he is!

 

Some of Ruskin's cast:

 

  • * Lakeith Stansfield ("Straight Outta Compton") is Colin Warner, who absolutely refuses to admit to a crime in order to have his sentence reduced. His attorney, his wife, his mother, all think he should plea bargain with a confession.
  • * Luke Forbes ("Atlanta") is his determined friend Anthony Gibson. He believes his friend and agrees with his refusal to sign a confession. He says what happened to Colin "could happen to me!" He stays the course at great personal cost.
  • * Adriane Lenox ("Lee Daniels' The Butler") Grace is in a spot where no mother ever wants to be. She weeps bitter tears for her son's situation.
  • * Zach Grenier ("The Good Wife") Detective Cassel isn't above a little pressure to get the testimony he needs.
  • * Sandra Washington ("The Deuce") Antoinette's pretty face shows up at exactly the right time for our lonely prisoner.
  • * Bill Camp ("Loving") William Robedeeshows up with the right skills and the right attitude, he's just 20 years late!
This film will do nothing to endear attorneys to us. In fact, it is quite the opposite. But this is one of those movies that gets the audience so involved that there are cheers for those rare times when things DO go right for our hero.
 
Stay for the final credits because the real people appear and are quoted. I love it when they do that!

 

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Check out this trailer:
http://www.imdb.com/videoplayer/vi873904409

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