Movie Review: 'Nickel Boys' Among the Best of 2024

Nickel Boys

Directed by RaMell Ross

Written by RaMell Ross, Joslyn Barnes

Starring Ethan Herisse, Brandon Wilson, Aunjanue Ellis, Hamish Linklater, Fred Hechinger

Release Date December 13th, 2024

Published December 16th, 2024

The experience of Nickel Boys begins quite jarringly. If you don’t know that the film is shot in first person, from the perspective of the main character, it takes a few minutes to acclimate. When the perspective then moves to a second lead character, the film once again forces you to find your bearings. Smartly, and compassionately for an often distracted modern audience, director RaMell Ross introduces the shift in perspective via showing a scene for a second time from this new perspective. It’s a simple yet incredibly smart way to apply a unique way of presenting a movie. And it is this simple and effective approach that provides the foundation for what becomes an incredible movie.

Nickel Boys follows the lives of two young men who meet while being held at a reform school that acts more like a prison for teens. We are first introduced to Elwood ‘El’ Curtis (Ethan Herisse), a smart and politically active young man living in Florida in the early 1960s. El has a bright future ahead of him as one of his teachers has helped him secure acceptance into a historically black college. His tuition is free, all he has to do is get there and that’s where things go wrong. After accepting a ride from a well dressed man in a nice car, El is arrested when it’s revealed that the man is a car thief.

El is sent to Nickel Academy and it’s unclear just how long he will have to be here. While at the Nickel, El is befriended by Turner (Brandon Wilson). Turner is more outgoing and friendly while El is shy and insular. They compliment each other and their friendship is what will help sustain them as they navigate the ugliness of sixties racism including corrupt teachers and guards, and a system that is eager to keep them locked away and forgotten for as long as possible simply because of the color of their skin. Keeping hope alive eventually turns to the notion of escape, especially for El whose bright future begins to dim with each revelation about his legal situation.

Prior to arriving at the Nickel, we get a glimpse of what made Elwood so smart and thoughtful. El was raised by his grandmother, Hattie (Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor), a devoutly religious woman, deeply devoted to the wellbeing of her grandson. She instills in him strength, intelligence, and a strong sense of justice. Though it’s frightening in the streets, she supports El’s tentative steps into the Civil Rights movement. And, after El is unjustly sent to Nickel Academy, Hattie sacrifices what little she has to try and secure his freedom. Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor’s performance is strikingly devoid of big emotional moments, preferring a stalwart approach that comes close to breaking apart, but remains steadfast until it absolutely must break.

Director RaMell Ross, working from a novel by Colson Whitehead, and with a co-adapted screenplay with Joslyn Barnes, directs Nickel Boys with assurance and purpose. The style, initially jarring, becomes fascinating and engaging quickly as we come to care about these two young men struggling to survive against a cruel and indifferent system. The approach is naturalistic, no one is showing off or overplaying, the style is classic realism with the exception of the first person perspective which is only unusual because movies don’t tend to be shot in this style.

This first person device is exceptionally well used. At one point, the camera takes a perspective that isn’t from the eyes of our protagonists but just slightly behind them and when you realize the purpose behind this choice it’s a dramatic and gut-wrenching realization. Ross uses the visual tools of filmmaking brilliantly and in consistently surprising ways. The editing is also exceptional along with the cinematography which wonderfully compliments the naturalistic approach of the acting and storytelling. Ross and cinematographer Jomo Fray use the first person perspective to free themselves to experiment with camera moves, angles, and the use of light that makes Nickel Boys dynamic and dazzling even as the story is harrowing and sad.

Nickel Boys is a revelation. The film is exceptionally well made, the acting is stellar, the look is incredible and the story is heartbreaking. RaMell Ross announces himself loudly as a brilliant new voice in modern film. Moving from documentary to feature films can be difficult but Ross’s debut is a seamless transition. He’s a director that I will be watching out for and eager to see what he does next. Nickel Boys is one of the greatest feature film debuts by any director I’ve ever seen, and it's among the best movies of 2024.

Find my archive of more than 20 years and more than 2000 movie reviews at SeanattheMovies.blogspot.com. Find my modern review archive on my Vocal Profile, linked here. Follow me on Twitter at PodcastSean. Follow the archive blog on Twitter at SeanattheMovies. And find me on my new favorite social media site, BlueSky, linked here. Listen to me talk about movies on the I Hate Critics Movie Review Podcast. If you have enjoyed what you have read, consider subscribing to my writing on Vocal. If you’d like to support my writing, you can do so by making a monthly pledge or by leaving a one time tip. Thanks!