All I heard from everyone about Fruitvale Station was that it was “depressing.” This summary really does the film a disservice – in fact, Fruitvale Station is crafted so skillfully, and which such obvious care, that the depressing ending of the film did not drag me down emotionally. This film is not grinding an ax. It is surprisingly pleasant and rewarding to watch.

The film opens with the actual cellphone footage of the shooting, and thus makes no pretense of building up to any kind of surprise. Instead, it focuses all of its energy on painting a very human and complete picture of the main character, Oscar, and his relationships with the various people in his life. In this, it reminded me very much of the simple, straightforward, dialog-driven indie films of the 1990’s. Because the characters are interesting and well-drawn, and the dialog is solid, all this “back history,” which is in fact the entire movie, is consistently interesting, and sometimes gripping in the context of the non-specific anticipation of the eventual ending. When we finally reach the denouement, one is struck not so much by the obvious and senseless tragedy, but by how much random chance influences, indeed shapes our entire lives. Instead of coming away thinking “God, what a bummer,” I came away from Fruitvale Station in a quietly contemplative mood. I wouldn’t call this film profound by any stretch, but I can say I didn’t expect anything half as thoughtful as it turned out to be. It’s a great film for those who are jaded by the postmodern downer shit that the indie film movement has evolved into.

I definitely recommend Fruitvale Station.