DVD Review: Antwone Fisher

When we first meet Antwone Fisher (Derek Luke), he's not a very likeable person. He is in the navy, but not much of a team player. He has a chip on his shoulder and a habit for getting into fights and breaking rules. The navy isn't one to simply write off their sailors, however, and rather than boot Fisher out or put him in jail, he's sent to a naval psychiatrist for evaluation.

Psychiatrist Jerome Davenport (Denzel Washington) is a man of infinite patience. Fisher isn't willing to talk, but Davenport is able to wait him out. He tells Fisher that they have three sessions together and they won't begin until Fisher actually begins talking. We get the impression that this takes weeks, but eventually Fisher breaks down and begins to tell his story.

It turns out that Fisher was an orphan. His father was killed before he was born and his mother was in prison at the time of his birth. Fisher found himself in the custody of family that are cruel to him and the other children in their care. At first it's easy to hate the foster family, but we later learn that they really have no control over themselves. They are stuck in a mind set that they don't know is wrong. Although their actions are not forgivable, they are pitiable.

As we learn Fisher's story, we come to understand that his anger exists simply because he's never had an adequate way to vent is frustrations and experiences. With no one to count on or relate to, he kept his feelings bottled up inside and their only outlet was through rebellion. Fisher comes to trust Davenport and values his sessions and his growing friendship with the psychiatrist.

Fisher's emotional release also opens him up to the possibility of romance. He meets Cheryl (Joy Bryant) and proceeds to win her over with his charms.

What makes Antwone Fisher work is that it is honest with its emotions. A lesser film would have copped out and taken an overly cheesy, sentimental route with many of its scenes. Take, for instance, the moment when Fisher is reunited with his birth mother. It would have been easy to create a falsely cheerful scene here. Instead, it is a joyous scene -- not because of some contrived family reunion, but because it plays real. We aren't given explanations or justifications because, simply, there are none. Instead, Fisher is able to say what he has to say and find the closure he needs and it's a brilliantly powerful scene.

It's no secret that the film is based upon the true story of the real Antwone Fisher, who wrote the screenplay. Many details of the real Fisher's life have been condensed and some elements have been invented. For instance, Davenport is a convention of the film. In reality, Fisher was helped by a series of psychiatrists. Still, the shortcuts made necessary by the film in no way cheapen the experiences of Fisher's life. This is a very emotionally charged and well told story. It's true that many elements of the film are predictable and there are a few clunky story details. This is, after all, the work of a first time screen writer. Still, the film works because the emotions are real.

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