Luce

The first week back at school has concluded and, other than feeling exhausted (getting back into a routine after a summer of playing is very difficult), it went extremely well!  Last night I decided to celebrate by going to the movie Luce which I have been anticipating for weeks.  It is one of the most thought-provoking movies I've seen and it is sure to feature on my end of year list!  Amy (Naomi Watts) and Peter (Tim Roth) adopted their son Luce (Kelvin Harrison, Jr.) from war-torn Eritrea when he was seven years old.  After a violent childhood as a gun wielding soldier, Luce has become an outstanding student, a champion debater, and an all-star athlete.  His parents are understandably proud and his teachers hold him up as an example of excellence to the other black students.  He is almost too perfect.  When Harriet Wilson (Octavia Spencer), Luce's history teacher, becomes alarmed at some extreme views expressed in one of his assignments, she searches his locker and makes a shocking discovery.  This calls into question everything his parents believe about him and brings a crisis to their marriage.  It is an incredibly powerful and somewhat uneasy exploration of identity that challenges preconceptions and I am still thinking about it.  I was especially struck by the juxtaposition between Luce and another black student who is vilified for a minor mistake because he has been labeled a delinquent.  The tension, augmented by a truly menacing score, becomes almost unbearable as the mystery of who Luce really is unfolds with no easy answers.  Harrison, Jr. gives a brilliant performance as a young man feeling the weight of living up to expectations.  A scene where he tearfully practices a speech about how lucky he feels to live in America, a place where he can be anything he wants to be, is almost overwhelming in its intensity because of the irony.  I was also impressed with Roth's chilling performance as a man who just wanted a normal family not a political statement.  This is definitely a provocative movie that will spark a lot of conversations and I highly recommend it!