We are seven months into 2024 and there are only two films that have earned a perfect 10 from me: CHECKPOINT ZOO and now Sing Sing. Colman Domingo produces and stars in Greg Kwedar’s film which was purchased by A24 after its run at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) last year. This breathtaking piece of cinema invokes the entire palette of emotions and reminds us of the power of community and the human spirit.
Divine G (Colman Domingo), imprisoned at Sing Sing for a crime he didn’t commit, finds purpose by acting in a theatre group alongside other incarcerated men. Made possible by RTA (Rehabilitation Through the Arts), Divine G was a pivotal figure in the group’s productions, wearing every hat from screenwriter and actor to motivator and counselor. With the assistance of his best friend Mike Mike (Sean San José), they looked to add a few choice volunteers to the fray. Once Divine Eye (Clarence Maclin) lands on their radar, the guys get a heavy reality check — a reminder of how difficult it is to simply exist in prison. The film is a true story and a powerful testament to the many layers of rehabilitation.
Alongside writer/producer Clint Bentley and producer Monique Walton, Greg Kwedar and the main cast hosted a screening at the National Museum of African American History and Culture on July 17. The screening was followed by a Q&A and reception which allowed media and privileged guests to have intimate discussions with the cast.
Before the Q&A, Kwedar spoke on how much of a privilege it was to work on a film with such a special team. Unlike mainstream filmmaking, the cast held a type of familial togetherness rarely seen both on and off-screen. He also eluded to how everyone involved was paid the same, not just for parity’s sake, but because it felt like the right thing to do. You can tell the director and producers put their souls into this film by their commentary and how powerful the film was.
Colman Domingo is the big name that everyone will recognize and don’t get me wrong, he does a phenomenal job. But the true stars of the film are the unforgettable ensemble of formerly incarcerated actors: Sean “Dino” Johnson, Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez, and John “Divine G” Whitfield. The group brought an unconscionable level of authenticity to the film. This wasn’t just a story they brought to life, they were reliving their experiences, both traumatic and inspirational, and the result was a thing of beauty. The film was used as a springboard for a handful of them as they’ve garnered representation and look to continue acting; Clarence Maclin was one of them.
The performance from Maclin was incredible. In one instance, you see an O.G. that nobody would dare cross on “The Yard”. In the next, you see him speaking in confidence to Divine G about books. A true tale of ‘Not judging a book by its cover’, one may not immediately assume he was adept at critical thinking or proficient in comprehension. But like a budding flower, he blooms into his full artistic self, meticulously dissecting Hamlet; not reciting his lines, but owning them.
The nature of human experience includes both its positive and negative aspects. It can encompass the events and characteristics of human life, such as growth, survival, and emotions; all of which are on full display in the film. The next layer relates to the connections that bridge the similarities between individuals and what we do during our lifetimes. In Sing Sing, the similarities that bridged the group included their environment (prison) and the longing for a place to feel emotions and grow, an opportunity afforded by the RTA. A group of men, accused of various crimes, arriving from various backgrounds, came together and created a safe space to harness their feelings and express them through the vehicle of artistic theatre.
Sing Sing gets a 10 out of 10. Is the true prison one of brick and mortar or the mind? Sing Sing isn’t just a film, it’s a challenge to society to see people as people, no matter what their past may look like, and for men to find and/or create safe spaces to share feelings and emotions. We as people were never meant to be isolated, we need community, and the film is a good reflection of that. The film is rated R, mostly for language and implied violence. This is one of those special films where it would be beneficial to young children to view with parental discretion because of how beautiful the outcome is and how society can achieve this if we were to copy and paste it into our reality.
Kwedar and Co. hope to open minds and change hearts with this life-altering project and implore you to get involved in some way. You can learn more about RTA by clicking the link. One important thing to note: this is not a prison movie, it’s a movie that takes place in a prison.
Release: Limited/DC Release set for August 2, 2024
-Jon Jones
Photos: Courtesy of A24
[…] SING SING REVIEW […]