Although we might not have known it a few days ago, the first reviews for Nickel Boys suggest that the movie could be an Oscar heavyweight this coming awards season. Directed by Ramell Ross and adapted from a Colson Whitehead novel of the same name, the movie now has its first trailer, which suggests an intimate, moving drama that also features what looks like some experimental form.
The film tells the story of two young Black men who are attending a reform school in Jim Crow-era Florida. The book is a work of fiction, but it’s based on the true story of a Florida reform school that covered up decades of abuse against its student. The novel toggles between the 1960s at the school, and the 2010s when the school’s abuses are being exposed following an investigation.
Ethan Herisse and Brandon Wilson star as the two young leads, and the cast also includes Daveed Diggs, Hamish Linklater, Fred Hechinger, and Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, who may be working her way toward an Oscar for her performance.
Nickel Boys was co-written by Ross and Joslyn Barnes, and will be Ross’s first narrative feature. He previously made the acclaimed documentary, Hale County, This Morning, This Evening. Since the movie first debuted at the Telluride Film Festival, it has become one of the most buzzed about titles of the year. Whether it can translate that into awards season glory remains to be seen, but it’s certainly off to a good start.
The movie is set to hit theaters on October 25.
