Michael B. Jordan creates buzz with his first lead
January 1st, 2009 — 22-Year-old Oscar Grant is ready to welcome a new year. This is his chance to be a better son, a better partner and most importantly, a better father. A fresh, new start for a young man with a troubled past. Sadly, for some people, they do not get a second chance.
Protest and riots in the Bay Area
When you play a role based on a real person, it seems to add more pressure to the actor. Oscar Grant’s death to the hands of a police officer sparked fury in the Bay Area. The nation mourned. Director Riyan Coogler brought this tragic story to life, with a talented young actor in Michael B. Jordan playing Oscar. Michael himself has admitted the pressure of playing what seems to be his toughest role yet, but he takes the responsibility in his stride.
Michael delivers a brave, honest, and committed performance in Fruitvale Station. He does not act, he blends into Oscar. He became Oscar. When Oscar’s mother Wanda (Octavia Spencer) walked away from him in jail, we got to see a fragile, desperate side of Oscar. His scenes with Ariana Neal (who play Oscar’s daughter Tatiana), brings a loving, peaceful side of him. Granted, we do not know Oscar to recognise how he walks or laughs. But that is what’s brilliant about Michael’s portrayal of Oscar. Michael gets to introduce us to his Oscar — he makes us feel like Oscar is one of us. Somehow, throughout the entire 90 minutes of the movie, you’ve made a connection with him and when we witness Oscar’s demise — we weep like we’ve lost a friend.
A breakthrough performance
Fruitvale Station is not the best biopic made, and perhaps some of the scenes are misleading — but Michael deserves praise for his breakthrough performance. He has given hints to Hollywood that he wants to play the roles that are not necessarily for a black actor. He wants to break the stereotype and showcase his promising talent. Michael has been in the business for quite a while and knows the ups and downs of being an actor. He’s had the painful experience of his character being written off a TV show at such a young age.
However, the role of Oscar Grant — which happened to be his first lead role — took him to Cannes and earned him several acting awards. The critics had dubbed him as one of the outside contenders for this years Best Actor Oscar — unfortunately, that never came to fruition. But it seems like Hollywood will be knocking on his door for the foreseeable future.
