Robert Ebert once said that movies are “the empathy machine.” I always thought the evolution of that would come through virtual reality. However, from my “POV,” director RaMell Ross has proven me wrong with his innovative new film.
NICKEL BOYS is a flawed masterpiece that will remind audiences of early Terrance Malick (BADLANDS), David Gordon Green (ALL THE REAL GIRLS), Richard Linklater’s heady-WAKING LIFE, or my favorite 2012 film by Benh Zeitlin, BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD. Each of those directors crafted unique visions that challenged audiences outside of the conceptual norms for how to tell a cinematic story. The biggest compliment I can give Ross is he is now on the shortlist of directors who have reinvented the language of cinema in ways I’ve only seen a handful of directors do. NICKEL BOYS is that revolutionary (the shot of the iron, foreshadowing on the fridge, and the NPC twist are still blowing my mind).
When I worked in VR, my theory was to get people who were not gamers to spend time in it, you needed to trick the passive movie watcher into thinking they are active. Gamers are used to being active participants in stories. However, moviegoers are not since watching a film is a passive experience. Movies have toyed with trying to make audience members feel active (see HARDCORE HENRY). Yet, there has never been a movie that tricks you into feeling active while also mapping to the empathy of its characters. It reminded me a lot of the walking simulator videogame genre, including games like FIREWATCH, WHAT REMAINS OF EDITH FINCH, THAT DRAGON, CANCER, and BEFORE YOUR EYES.
After seeing NICKEL BOYS, I had an opportunity to talk to Ross and ask if video games or virtual reality inspired him to tell this story as he did. He said it did not and wasn’t familiar with the experiences I mentioned. This blew my mind. Ross could speak the language of video games/virtual reality in a film without even experiencing them. He also tricked an entire audience into feeling like an active participant in Elwood and Turner’s story. That trick is easily the most magical experience I’ve had at the movies this year.
NICKEL BOYS opens in limited theaters starting on December 13th.
