"O.G." // TRIBECA 2018 REVIEW
You always know I’m in for a treat when I see Jeffrey Wright is headlining a movie. Even if the movie ends up being so-so, his performance will be compelling and memorable. And true to that promise, Mr. Wright is a powerful presence in the gripping and absorbing in O.G., which breaks into a more realistic look at a man who has faced hard time and is itching to finally get out. Wright plays Louis, a prisoner in a maximum-security prison who has served 24 years, which was originally a 60-year sentence cut for good behavior. It’s clear from the first moment that he is a respected presence in the prison. He makes easy small talk with the guards and even when a detective pulls him in to try and get some information from him, they have a history and there’s a respect there. He gives strong advice to Beech (Theothus Carter), a new inmate to help him get through the days: “Dignity, self-respect, grace.” But all of that gets tested as he takes this new inmate under his wings, hoping to set him on the right path before he leaves this place behind.
What’s fascinating about the film is not only does it get the feelings, grit, and emotions right, but that the film is one of the few films to be shot inside Pendleton Correctional Facility. Most of the inmates and guards were actual inmates and guards, including Theothus Carter who give a strong performance as Beech. He is still currently in prison, as many of the prisoners still are, and their presence alone give the film a lived in and honest feel at life behind the walls. Wright is powerful in the lead role, a man who has paid for his crimes and wants to start anew, also realizing that he doesn’t know how he will adjust to the outside world and knows that he still has a lot of things to make peace with. Directed with a powerful hand by Madeline Sackler, O.G. stands out as an authentic and compelling look at a system that few of us have actually, and hopefully never will, experience
VERDICT: SEE IT