Fruitvale Station

A black fairy tale with a bad ending. A professionally made movie based on real events that’s afraid to go deeper and instead sticks to template characters, going against most viewers, and with simple emotions. It is very convincingly made, so I’m not complaining much. Your average four-star film. (07/09/2013)

This seemingly banal story (with a tragic ending) is based on real events from the life of an ordinary African-American and his family. It is, however, rendered in such quality that it will touch your heart and bring tears to your eyes. Michael B. Jordan's acting and Ryan Coogler's directing are both outstanding. (07/02/2013)

I admit that I don't like activists for their one-dimensional view of complex issues. Activism, at the very least, flattens and hinders discussion; I simply look at its expressions with suspicion. However, I don't primarily blame Fruitvale Station for its activist stances and emotional manipulation; the film simply falls into the category of engaged cinema. Although I somewhat identify with its goals, I also note that I haven't seen a title for a long time that so blatantly owed its victory in the festival battle to its subject matter. It is simply too unexciting and unremarkable, lacking emphasis and provocativeness, an incorrect rebellion in the style of Spike Lee. I don't find any directorial or screenwriting mastery here either. I'm giving three stars this time more out of courtesy and for the subject matter. Overall impression: 50%. (08/18/2017)

This movie plays it safe and its strong point is the fact that it is actually a dramatized recording of real events. It is a documentary that follows the events that led to one unnecessary death. From the first scene, which was captured in real life, when an innocent man was shot, it is clear that this will be a film that won't hold anything back, it goes straight to the point. Thanks to this opening scene, your insides will gradually tighten, and you will simply contemplate in silence when you realize that the finale is approaching. It is unfair, but what's even sadder is that these things really happen. And the responsibility is not that great after all... (01/31/2014)

The Sundance Film Festival audience wept and sent us Czechs a film that is supposed to make us feel that human rights are a bit out of the way overseas when different ethnic groups start to get at each other. Sorry, folks, but what I see in this is a perfectly calculated idyll about a reformed black man who got on the wrong train. The actors are without question divine and the direction is actually very assured, but I simply refuse to accept the pressure to ring tears out of the audience. (07/03/2013)