See the original review on OneFilmFan.
A guarantee of our future. When we are young, it can be so easy to be in a state of flux as to what our lives might hold for us. It is a time of exploration, with all potential opportunities ahead that we can ponder and then, ideally, narrow down to what our passions lead us to pursue. Yet, in doing this, it becomes imperative we have the support, encouragement, challenge, and accountability to see it through. When this has been absent, it then turns into drifting along or, at minimum, not recognizing the need to fill a void we don’t always want to acknowledge…or rectify.
What life does hold for a young man named Jamarcus (Duane Ervin) appears to be a fulfilling career in the sport he loves the most…baseball. Yet, in spite of his highly competent skills, there’s something missing….a true male role model. At the doting but firm behest of his only “parent”, his grandmother Esther (Ruthie Austin), Jamarcus is taken under the wing of Jasper (Stephen Cofield Jr.) from the Big Brothers of America. What both men will discover are the mutually shared struggles and need for genuine influences. Life, however, can be such a perilous, and tragic, thing.
Over the last several years, I have had the privilege of being one of the critics having the opportunity to watch and review several films from writer/director/producer Marcellus Cox, whose efforts are never anything less but grounded, relevant, and steeped in unflinching glimpses illustrating the gripping, inspired, and ever-vacillating realms that make up the human condition. After offering my thoughts on the filmmaker’s previous accomplishments…”Mickey Hardaway” (Short Film version), “Mickey Hardaway” (Feature Film version), and “Liquor Bank“…the time has arrived to tackle the newest short film from someone I firmly believe will continue to make larger and larger splashes within the cinematic arena. Teaming up with producer Eric Quincy, executive producer Sandra Evers-Manly, and associate producers Stanley Diedrich, Chris Kim, and Alexandra Nelson, Cox once more delivers with passion, impact, and a no-nonsense portrait of existence.
Checking in at a perfectly timed, superbly executed twenty-three minutes, the narrative sees us immersed into the world of a young high schooler whose sole desire it is to be a professional baseball pitcher reluctantly opening up to a man he is introduced to through Big Brothers of America who wants to BE that grander, more positive influence helping guide him towards it. Now, one MIGHT wish to argue it sounds like a fairly typical “chasing your dreams” style story, which is always welcome, motivational, and, frankly, needed these days as it is, in my opinion. Yet, leave it to the genre that is independent cinema to expand on this foundational gist and turn it into a far more in depth, stirring, fearless, credible foray into just how things in life are NOT a constant of smooth sailing, but rather an often stormy sea of challenges, choices, and unexpected circumstances that can utterly transform people’s paths they tread.
As such, here we are experiencing a journey that is as heartening as it is haunting, evocative as it is compellingly unrelenting in showcasing the very nature of youthful rebellion, loss, brotherhood, and resilience. Yet it is also the depiction of extremes in one’s interpretation of what they feel is necessary to survive, to exist, even when it might come at the cost of others’ peace and happiness. It is a story of broken families tainted by harsh decisions and mentalities, the redemptive power of authentic compassion, and the encounters with misguided moments that can crush all in its path. The thematic forays touch on these plus confidence vs. ignorance, trying to avoid wandering down more crooked paths, contemplating the now vs. the future, the absence and discovery of true role models, chasing dreams, the specters of addiction, overcoming difficult pasts and family situations, inner pains we hold in and those who aid us in releasing it, and the healing potency of listening.
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