| If Beale Street Could Talk | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Barry Jenkins |
| Screenplay by | Barry Jenkins |
| Based on | If Beale Street Could Talk byJames Baldwin |
| Produced by |
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| Starring | |
| Cinematography | James Laxton |
| Edited by | |
| Music by | Nicholas Britell |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Annapurna Pictures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 117 minutes[1] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $12 million[2] |
| Box office | $20.6 million[3] |
If Beale Street Could Talk is a 2018 Americanromantic drama film written and directed byBarry Jenkins and based onJames Baldwin's1974 novel. It stars anensemble cast that includesKiKi Layne,Stephan James,Colman Domingo,Teyonah Parris,Michael Beach,Dave Franco,Diego Luna,Pedro Pascal,Ed Skrein,Brian Tyree Henry, andRegina King. The film follows a young woman who, with her family's support, seeks to clear the name of her wrongly charged lover and prove his innocence before the birth of their child.
Following the success of Jenkins'sMoonlight (2016), it was announced in July 2017 that he would direct an adaptation of Baldwin's novel, from a screenplay that he wrote in 2013. Principal photography began in October 2017 inNew York City and the cast was announced that month.
If Beale Street Could Talk had its world premiere at theToronto International Film Festival on September 9, 2018, and was theatrically released in the United States on December 14, 2018, byAnnapurna Pictures. It was praised for its acting, Jenkins's screenplay and direction, cinematography, and the musical score. It was chosen by both theNational Board of Review and theAmerican Film Institute as one of the Top 10 Films of 2018. The film receivednumerous accolades, including Best Supporting Actress wins for King at theAcademy Awards andGolden Globes. It was also nominated forBest Motion Picture – Drama andBest Screenplay at the76th Golden Globe Awards, andBest Adapted Screenplay andBest Original Score at the91st Academy Awards.
Note: The film's structure isnon-linear, but this plot summary is written in a linear fashion.
Clementine "Tish" Rivers and Alonzo "Fonny" Hunt have been friends their whole lives. They become romantically involved when they get older. In the 1970s, they struggle to find an apartment, as mostNew York landlordswould not rent to black people. Eventually, they find a place in a warehouse being converted toloft apartments; Levy, the Jewishlandlord, rents it to them because he enjoys seeing couples who are in love.
That night, Tish is harassed by a man while in a mostly white grocery store. He begins to assault her, so Fonny physically throws him out of the store. A white policeman nearby, Officer Bell, attempts to arrest Fonny for it, but reluctantly lets him go when the Jewish woman who runs the grocery store vouches for them and chastises Bell for his racism.
Fonny is later arrested and accused of raping a woman named Victoria Rogers. Although it is impossible for him to have gone from thescene of the crime to the apartment where he was arrested in the time between the rape and the arrest, the case against Fonny is considered strong due to Officer Bell'stestimony. It is obvious officer Bell has set Fonny up because of the last incident at the store, he told Fonny, he would see him again. The claim is he saw Fonny fleeing the scene, he lies and Victoria identified Fonny in alineup as her rapist, because she was told to pick him out. Tish, as well as Fonny's friend Daniel Carty, were with him at the time of the rape, but it is considered an unreliable alibi due to Tish's romantic relationship with Fonny and Daniel's previous conviction forgrand theft auto.
Tish visits Fonny in jail as he awaits trial and reveals to him that she is pregnant with their baby. Fonny is excited to be a father, but saddened that the birth might be while he is still behind bars. Later, Tish tells her parents, Sharon and Joseph, and sister, Ernestine, about her pregnancy. Though worried for her, Tish's family is supportive and decide to invite Fonny's family over to share the news.
Frank, Fonny's father, is excited, however, Fonny's highly religious mother declares that as the child was conceived out of wedlock, Tish and her child are damned. Frank hits Ms. Hunt and, disgusted, she leaves with her daughters. As she's leaving, Sharon reminds her that she has just condemned her own grandchild, leaving her emotionally distraught as she is escorted away.
In a bar, Frank and Joseph discuss how the former is worried about paying for a child and Fonny's legal expenses, but Joseph convinces him that they will be able to provide for their grandchild the same way they provided for their own children.
Sharon travels to Victoria's native Puerto Rico to plead with her to change her testimony. She tries to convince her she mistakenly identified Fonny as her rapist, but Victoria refuses. Questioning whether Victoria could have seen her rapist's face in the dark, Victoria says the police told her to identify Fonny in a line-up, and she did so. When Sharon gently touches her, Victoria begins to scream. An elderly woman overhears the commotion and comes to take Victoria away. Discouraged by the seeming hopelessness of his case and the constant trial delays, Tish gives birth to her son without Fonny, who eventually accepts a plea deal.
Tish and their child, Alonzo Jr., visit Fonny in prison. They share snacks together while looking forward to Fonny's eventual release.
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On July 10, 2017, it was announced thatBarry Jenkins would direct an adaptation ofJames Baldwin's novelIf Beale Street Could Talk. Jenkins wrote the screenplay during the summer of 2013, as he was writingMoonlight.[4]
On August 29, 2017,Stephan James was set to star.[5] In September 2017,KiKi Layne andTeyonah Parris were also added, with Layne in the female lead.[6][7]Lin-Manuel Miranda was almost cast in the film, but he was ultimately not, though he and Jenkins got acquainted and kept in touch since.[8]
On October 18, 2017, it was reported thatIf Beale Street Could Talk had begun filming inNew York City.[9] That same month,Regina King,Colman Domingo,Brian Tyree Henry,Dave Franco, andEd Skrein joined the cast of the film.[10][11][12][13]Michael Beach,Finn Wittrock,Aunjanue Ellis, andDiego Luna were added in November,[14][15][16] and in December 2017,Pedro Pascal andEmily Rios joined.[17][18] In March 2018,Nicholas Britell was announced as the composer of the film's score.[19]
If Beale Street Could Talk began a limited release in the United States on December 14, 2018, with an expanded release on December 25. It had previously been scheduled for November 30, 2018.[20] The film had its world premiere at theToronto International Film Festival on September 9, 2018.[21] It also screened at theNew York Film Festival on October 11, 2018, theNew Orleans Film Festival on October 21, 2018,[22][23] and the St. Louis International Film Festival on November 10, 2018.
If Beale Street Could Talk grossed $14.9 million in the United States and Canada, and $5.6 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $20.6 million.[3]
During its opening weekend, December 14, the film made $219,174 from four theaters, for a per-venue average of $54,794, one of the best of 2018.[24] In its second weekend, the film earned $114,902,[25] and in its third made $759,578 from 65 theaters.[26] In its fourth weekend, the film expanded to 335 theaters, earning $1.9 million.[27] The next weekend, January 11, following its Golden Globe win the film expanded to 1,018 theaters and grossed $2.3 million.[28]
On review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 95%, based on 363 reviews, with an average rating of 8.6/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "If Beale Street Could Talk honors its source material with a beautifully filmed adaptation that finds director Barry Jenkins further strengthening his visual and narrative craft."[29] OnMetacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 87 out of 100, based on 53 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[30] Audiences polled byPostTrak gave the film an 82% overall positive score and a 65% "definite recommend".[28]
Eric Kohn ofIndieWire gave the film an "A−", stating: "Jenkins' follow-up toMoonlight also maintains his own expressionistic aesthetic, with its lush colors and entrancing faces that speak volumes in few words, resulting in a fascinating hybrid experience — a seminal voice of the past merging with one of the present in a mesmerizing burst of creative passion."[31] Siddhant Adlakha of/Film said the film felt "electric and alive" and specified, "The worlds these characters create — whether in the form of individual, soul-piercing stares, or moments of burning passion filmed in profile — carry with them the weight of the very history of which Tish constantly speaks."[32]
At the76th Golden Globe Awards, the film was nominated for three awards:Best Motion Picture – Drama,Best Supporting Actress for King, andBest Screenplay, with King winning. At the91st Academy Awards, the film was nominated forBest Adapted Screenplay,Best Original Score, andBest Supporting Actress for Regina King, with King winning.[33] At the24th Critics' Choice Awards, the film received five nominations, includingBest Picture,Best Supporting Actress for King, andBest Adapted Screenplay.
Both theNational Board of Review andAmerican Film Institute included it in their top 10 films of 2018 and former U.S. PresidentBarack Obama named listed the film among his favorite movies of 2018.[34]
