SPOTLIGHT FILM
WINNER: U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival
How do you salvage your marriage when you are struggling to salvage your soul, your sense of self, and your sense of right and wrong? In thisdeath penalty story that doubles as a devastating character study, Bernadine Williams (Alfre Woodard, giving a "brilliant performance") is a prison warden who, over the years, has been drifting away from her husband (Wendell Pierce, The Wire) while dutifully carrying out executions in a maximum security prison. When she strikes up a unique bond with death-row inmate Anthony Woods (Aldis Hodge, Hidden Figures) who is convicted of killing a cop and swears by his innocence, a layer of emotional skin is peeled back, forcing Bernadine to confront the complex, and often contradictory relationship between good intentions, unrequited desires, and what it means to be sanctioned to kill.
An absorbing and penetrating character study that pulls into deep focus the various ways in which people facing impossible ethical circumstances strive to achieve some state of grace. Director Chinonye Chukwu crafts a dense, emotional film through masterful restraint and precision, drawing forth radiant performances that illuminate the internal grapplings of people searching for redemption and self-recognition. A rare, sensitive, and deeply observant prison drama that expertly examines the moral toll capital punishment takes on everyone involved - from lawyers to activists, family members to the executioner - Clemency offers a fresh and meaningful contribution to the genre.
Sponsored by: AARP Long Island
