Fruitvale Station (2013)
92%RT Audience Score: 87%
Awards & Nominations: 36 wins & 57 nominations
Passionate and powerfully acted, Fruitvale Station serves as a celebration of life, a condemnation of death, and a triumph for star Michael B. Jordan.
Fruitvale Station is a film that will make you feel all the feels. It’s not just a movie about police brutality, it’s a movie about a man who loved his family and wanted to do better. Michael B. Jordan’s performance is so good, you’ll forget he’s acting. And while it’s not an easy watch, it’s an important one. So grab some tissues and get ready to be moved.
Production Company(ies)
Svensk Filmindustri
Distributor
Weinstein Co.
Release Type
Streaming, Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)
Filming Location(s)
Oakland, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for some violence, language throughout and some drug use
Year of Release
2013
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 25m
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Language(s):English, Spanish
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jul 26, 2013 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 14, 2014
Genre(s)
Drama
Keyword(s)
starring Michael B Jordan, Octavia Spencer, Melonie Diaz, Ahna O’Reilly, Kevin Durand, Chad Michael Murray, Forest Whitaker, Nina Yang Bongiovi, directed by Ryan Coogler, written by Ryan Coogler, drama, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Fikri, Jenna Marotta, Candice Frederick, Nijla Mu’min, Dwight Brown, Kate Muir, Jason Adams, Dayne Linford, Allen Almachar, Tom Meek, David Lamble, R rating, police brutality, true story, San Francisco, New Year’s Eve, family, friends, tragedy, celebration of life, condemnation of death, triumph, passion, powerfully acted
Worldwide gross: $17,385,830
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $22,086,055
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,681
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 2,408,512
US/Canada gross: $16,101,339
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $20,454,304
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,407
US/Canada opening weekend: $386,291
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $490,724
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,412
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $900,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $1,143,313
Production budget ranking: 2,082
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $615,674
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $20,327,068
ROI to date (est.): 1,156%
ROI ranking: 105
Octavia Spencer – Wanda
Melonie Diaz – Sophina
Ahna O’Reilly – Katie
Kevin Durand – Officer Caruso
Chad Michael Murray – Officer Ingram
Director(s)
Ryan Coogler
Writer(s)
Ryan Coogler
Producer(s)
Forest Whitaker, Nina Yang Bongiovi
Film Festivals
Sundance, Cannes
Awards & Nominations
36 wins & 57 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (215) | Top Critics (84) | Fresh (202) | Rotten (13)
First-time director Ryan Coogler chose to tell Grant’s story as a narrative instead of a documentary to centre his voice and his life, in the process raising important questions about police brutality and the value of black lives.
July 13, 2021
Fikri
Autostraddle
TOP CRITIC
Fruitvale Station offers no social remedies, but by recreating Grant’s final hours, it actualizes him as a man, not just a rally cry.
March 31, 2020
Jenna Marotta
indieWire
TOP CRITIC
While Fruitvale Station is elevated by Jordan’s portrayal, the supporting cast, whose characters surround Oscar even during his most internal struggles, is also magnetic to watch.
September 7, 2017 | Rating: A-
Candice Frederick
Reel Talk Online
TOP CRITIC
This is a film for the people, a film for feelers and thinkers who want to see a story about a flawed person who loved his daughter and family.
August 14, 2017
Nijla Mu’min
Shadow and Act
TOP CRITIC
Michael B. Jordon honed his talent on series like The Wire and Friday Night Lights. His performance seems natural but that doesn’t mean it was easy to achieve. It’s subtle, deep and fiery.
March 21, 2017 | Rating: 3.5/4
Dwight Brown
National Newspaper Publishers Association
TOP CRITIC
Coogler’s realistic debut recreates Grant’s final day with affection, refusing to cast him as either saint or sinner.
September 23, 2014 | Rating: 4/5
Kate Muir
Times (UK)
TOP CRITIC
For something attempting to be intimate, it’s instead kind of smothering
January 14, 2022
Jason Adams
My New Plaid Pants
Ultimately, Fruitvale Station is a great film because it sticks to a single core concept – the portrayal of a single life, the mundane, difficult, and sublime nature of which was lost in the media controversy and the ensuing riots.
February 25, 2021
Dayne Linford
Battleship Pretension
This is not an easy film to watch, but it’s an important one. It should be and needs to be seen.
July 24, 2020 | Rating: A
Allen Almachar
The MacGuffin
Prophetic and timely…and a painful yet insightful view into what ails America today.
June 22, 2020 | Rating: 3/4
Tom Meek
Cambridge Day
Coogler provides a suspenseful moral parable overflowing with the kind of incongruities that pepper the lives of our martyrs: Harvey, Matthew and Tyler Clementi.
June 19, 2020
David Lamble
Bay Area Reporter
Fruitvale Station is one “must see” stop for all movie-goers.
November 27, 2019
Debbie Lynn Elias
Behind The Lens…
Plot
This is the true story of Oscar, a 22-year-old Bay Area resident who wakes up on the morning of December 31, 2008 and feels something in the air. Not sure what it is, he takes it as a sign to get a head start on his resolutions: being a better son to his mother, whose birthday falls on New Year’s Eve, being a better partner to his girlfriend, who he hasn’t been completely honest with as of late, and being a better father to T, their beautiful 4 year old daughter. He starts out well, but as the day goes on, he realizes that change is not going to come easy. He crosses paths with friends, family, and strangers, each exchange showing us that there is much more to Oscar than meets the eye. But it would be his final encounter of the day, with police officers at the Fruitvale BART station that would shake the Bay Area to its very core, and cause the entire nation to be witnesses to the story of Oscar Grant.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Michael B. Jordan delivers a “sensitive portrayal of a troubled young man” in Fruitvale Station, according to audience reviews on Fresh Kernels.
Ryan-Coogler.jpg
