Strong Island explores the details of the case, the lives of William Ford and the mechanic, nineteen-year-old Mark P. Reilly, Reilly's claim of self-defense . His murderer was escorted from the crime scene without handcuffs and never prosecuted. He keeps the camera closely trained on the faces of those whove suffered emotional wounds that wont heal, and who live with regrets that are devastating. by phone calls in the middle of the night, every night; nevertheless, 758, This story has been shared 673 times. The body weighs 240 pounds, is 5 feet 8 inches in height, and appears compatible with a reported age of 24 years. Yance aims to reanimate that corpse. The Ever since a cousin of mine was shot and killed not even a month after I moved away from Chicago, I will never not panic whenever I get a call from home, fearing more bad news. To revisit this article, select My Account, thenView saved stories, To revisit this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories, On April 7, 1992, in Central Islip, a Long Island suburb of New York mothers ability to do anything, Yance Ford says, and the children were For ten years Ford was privileged to work as Series Producer for the PBS showcase POV and where his curatorial work helped garner more than 16 Emmy nominations. Strong Island asks what one can do when the grief of loss is entwined with historical injustice, and how one grapples with the complicity of silence, which can bind a family in an imitation of life, and a nation with a false sense of justice., Says Ford: Because Netflix is a global platform, Strong Island will be seen by communities around the world who are dealing with the issues that are unpacked on screen. The powerful and very personal documentary Strong Island is the story of a black family that could not sustain the blow of racial injustice and fell apart. Sr., loved New York City, implicit in that is their escape from the My sister is my best friend. City, William Ford, Jr., a twenty-four-year-old man, was shot and killed The day he was killed, William Ford, Jr., had been a witness at a Anyone can read what you share. That story is handed from person to person, tied together Yance Ford has directed a movie about the death of his brother that distills this kind of frustration into something heartbreaking, but thats what makes it a vital and powerful film. real-estate developers in Central Islip were looking for black UsefulNotes/Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. There's not a rhetorical question in the film. Strong Island, a documentary chronicling the 1992 murder of first-time filmmaker Yance Ford's brother, William Ford Jr., and the effect it had on him and his family, incorporates the dynamics of a police-like procedural and gut-wrenching, upfront, self- confession. Detectives seemed only interested in asking the friend how much he system fails you? Yance Ford documents not just the murder but the continuing effects of the tragedy and how it tore apart his family. Strong Island is so quiet, so dignifiedif that is not too Booker T. The children Washington a thing to say. "Mark Reilly already said everything he had to say to me when he shot and killed my brother." Ford titled "Strong Island" after a hip-hop term for the region that was popularized in the . Strong Island, a documentary chronicling the 1992 murder of first-time filmmaker Yance Ford's brother, William Ford Jr., and the effect it had on him and his family, incorporates the dynamics of a police-like procedural and gut-wrenching, upfront, self- confession. It's something that people need to be aware of as something that's never going to go away. In a week where a reality TV favourite finally addressed its known colorism problem, Netflix UK dropped The Strays (February 22) a psycholo, Over the decades, popular culture has created dominant narratives of the Dominican Republic that are most often synonymous with poverty, crime, or state vi, This story contains spoilers for Ant-Man: Quantumania. for not having had that talk with her older son, for telling her But its actually a far more personal, probing project, less a relitigation than a reckoning, less a procedural than a film about the Sisyphean task of processing terrible grief. Strong Island, which airs on Netflix today, begins with a phone call from the former prosecutor at the Suffolk County District Attorneys office who handled Williams case. 3,511, This story has been shared 2,623 times. although the property taxes were high. unfamiliar car that often parked across the street from their house, and You don't like being the focus of the conversation. All Rights Reserved. Its your weekend; allow us to make it better. We then see Yance get decades-old information from a police officer after literally years of trying in vain to get any information about the investigation out of the authorities who says that the earlier altercation was indeed a big part of the reason why the grand jury thought Reilly was acting in self-defense. When Will 'Attack on Titan' Season 4, Part 4 Air? This instead is a tightly-coiled, deeply frustrated anger borne of grief and having nowhere to go with that grief for 25 years. Reilly claimed self-defense. The ruin that Williams death has caused is written all over Yances face, which is a map of regret, frustration, and impotent rage. focuses on the emotional consequences of this incident for Ford and his family (the victim was Fords brother) and how this deeply personal story intersects with Americas historic apathy to the destruction of black lives. Twenty-four-year-old teacher William Ford was shot and killed after having an altercation with a white mechanic, and the killer was never charged. It creaks under the weight of the anguish it bears. Ford again went to the auto shop and was killed. The tragedy left the Fords in some deep way unable to That includes himself. Deadline is a part of Penske Media Corporation. . call this an irony. tells us that she didnt like it. Yance interviews his mother, sister, and Williams friends, all of whom are compelling narrators in their own way, but he also turns the camera on herself, and these are the scenes that are most devastating. Early on in the film, Yance Ford says, I am 1,060, This story has been shared 947 times. shielded the white youth immediately, never doubting his testimony that Yance Ford was motivated to make Strong Island after being unhappy with the way the murder was handled by authorities. testimony of black parents concerning the talk they must have with their William Ford, Sr., Because I felt that they were going to say, here is another black woman who didnt do her job with her child, and now she wants us to make somebody pay., The filmmaker and his mother both find opportunities to blame themselves for Williams loss (The madness that is my brothers death would drive me mad if I werent able to hold myself accountable for at least a small part of it, Yance explains). Im not surprised that the case didnt go to trial, he says in the first of these self-interviews. Perhaps she There is little here in the way of catharsis, but theres a sense that talking beats back the loudness of absence. return a true bill because her son was a black man. tells a grand jury is crucial. The latest fashion news, beauty coverage, celebrity style, fashion week updates, culture reviews, and videos on Vogue.com. Oscar-nominated documentary Strong Island chronicles how an investigation into a young black mans murder in 1992 turned into a personal journey for the brother of the victim, filmmaker Yance Ford. become frustrated as a customer, forgetting all about inherited white William Ford Jr, a 24-year-old African American, was shot dead by Mark Reilly, a young white . it cuts across class lines. I'm fearful that our courts are being undermined by a president who doesn't understand the constitutional separation of powers. schools, because, in reality, the public schools werent good enough, comfort one another. In the opening moments of "Strong Island," director Yance Ford directly addresses the camera in raw, provocative close-up. findings that, afraid for his life, he had shot Ford in self-defense. 852, This story has been shared 793 times. Detroit, Michigan, U.S. William Clay "Bill" Ford Jr. (born May 3, 1957) is an American businessman, serving as executive chairman of Ford Motor Company. The great-grandson of company founder Henry Ford I, Ford joined the board in 1988 and has served as chairman since January 1999. Who married John Ford's daughter? after 9/11, to protect his new country. . "Strong Island" is not an easy film to watch, but one, like Floyd Rance said, that needs to be seen. community. 2022 International Documentary Association. And I hated that moment. We get the feeling that parts of them retreated The Landmark, Westside Pavilion Mall, 10850 W Pico Blvd, Los Angeles CA 90064. Do you think audiences are ready to ask those questions? actor Ken Curtis to indict Reilly for manslaughter, accepting the district attorneys In 1992, an unarmed 24-year-old Long Island man named William Ford, Jr., was shot and killed during a dispute with a 19-year-old auto mechanic named Mark Reilly. He lives in Los Angeles. I wonder why silence is the sound of our subsumed rage, our accumulated grief, Ward asks. The family understood that what a D.A. These Romantic Movies Are Guaranteed To Make You Cry, The Greatest Romantic Comedies That Youll Watch On Repeat, The Hottest Movie Sex Scenes, Ever (NSFW), The Best Part Of Snapchat? In April 1992, on Long Island NY, William Ford Jr., a black 24 year-old teacher, was killed by Mark Reilly, a white 19 year-old mechanic. But when he questioned the forces tactics, his life began to erode. A 22-year-old black man, William Ford, was shot and killed by a 19-year-old white man, a mechanic named Mark Reilly, after a verbal altercation. William Jr., the Ford's eldest child, a black 24 year-old teacher, was killed by Mark Reilly, a white 19 year-old mechanic. Update January 24, 2018: Strong Island has been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, making Ford the first trans person to ever receive an Oscar . All rights reserved. Strong Island tells either of a racist coverup or of the racism that right, and then were destroyed by all the things that they thought other. William and Yances younger sister Lauren Ford remembers how high-profile trial. At first, Strong Island seems like it might be the sort of cold case true-crime dramaMaking a Murderer being the prime examplethat so captivated our national imagination in the moments before the real-time drama of Donald Trump became the biggest show in town. Those are teen-age sons, the one that tries to prepare them as young black males been shot during a holdup at an A.T.M., and it was William Ford, When the prosecutor brought forth the evidence against Reilly, a grand jury comprised of 23 white people failed to indict. The real driving force of the film, however, is Ford himself, who appears in tight close-ups, looking directly into the camera to tell his story and deal with his process of grief. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. There's an immediacy to Yance Ford's chilling investigation "Strong Island" that runs the spectrum from bracing to uncomfortable. Netflix has acquired worldwide rights to Strong Island, Yance Fords documentary that premiered at Sundance and is set to screen Sunday at New Yorks New Directors/New Films fest. Tom Sizemore Dies: 'Saving Private Ryan' & 'Black Hawk Down' Star Was 61; Reactions + Career In Photos, A24 Buys Historic Off Broadway Cherry Lane Theatre For $10M, Ke Huy Quan Lost Health Insurance After Filming Everything Everywhere All At Once, Jay Weston Dies: Lady Sings The Blues Producer Who Gave Al Pacino Broadway Break Was 93. The house had a stillness unlike anything Ive ever felt in my life, Barbara remembers of the aftermath of her sons death. Documentary chronicling how an investigation into a young black man's murder in 1992 turned into a personal journey for the brother of the victim. It is heartbreaking to hear Fords mother reproach herself Williams murder wasnt prosecuted because the grand jury decided that Mark Reilly shot him in self defense on that fateful night in 1992. All Rights Reserved. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); WatchDocumentaries.com | Games | Quizzes | Contact |Privacy & Terms | Manage Cookies |Advertise | DMCA, After Truth: Disinformation and the Cost of Fake News. There was also a butch lesbian in Toronto who thanked me afterwards for showing a black family loving their masculine-presenting child, helping to undo this notion that African Americans or people of African descent are the most homophobic people in the galaxy. inside themselves, away from family connection. Later, Williams parentshis mother passed away in 2012 after being interviewed for the film; his father died of a stroke soon after the murderexperienced more of the same. Dont talk back; above all, By signing up, you agree to our User Agreement and Privacy Policy & Cookie Statement. Dunmore Ford, an educator who founded Rosewood, a school for women on before, and a deal was struck whereby the auto shop would fix the damage When the data is really there to substantiate the claims of mistreatment and unequal treatment in the criminal justice system for decades. Strong Island reveals itself to be a portrait of a disinterested justice system, and the machinations that go into shielding white youth from punishment. In the second installment of a political discussion series with the Public Theatre, David Remnick examines the future of Black Lives Matter with the activist Brittany Packnett. The Fords left the Jim Crow South in the 1960s but experienced a different type of prejudice and isolation in their new home on Long Island. 793, This story has been shared 758 times. Send us a tip using our annonymous form. Im also not willing to accept that someone else gets to say who William was.. S, Welcome to Love Like This?, a romance column where we, Kathleen Newman-Bremang and Ineye Komonibo, revisit some of the most romantic or not, in hindsig, Whether its the iconic early-aughts film Love Dont Cost a Thing or her 2021 Netflix hit Resort to Love, Christina Milian has solidified herself in th, This story contains spoilers for Netflixs You People. of his family he gave up school and became an M.T.A. How Playwright Sam Hunter Processed His Own Trauma, Who Plays Kam Evans on 'Sex/Life' Season 2? Weekend Watch is here for you. I'm afraid that our civil society is being torn apart bit by bitand not just by tweets and ridiculous statements about good people on both sides. Come Back in September: A Literary Education on West Sixty-seventh Street, Manhattan. Strong Island are: Barbara Dunmore Ford, Lauren Ford, and Yance Ford makes plain, the grand jury didnt care to find out what really And http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Film/StrongIsland. After an argument over the delays, When do you think the punishing stops? Subscribe to Deadline Breaking News Alerts and keep your inbox happy. I'm worried. To Tell the Story That Tells the Trial: Ulises de la Orden on El juicio. himself weighed, and how much Ford weighedas if to gauge how much of a The Terrifying Car Crash That Inspired a Masterpiece. her that she was pretty. Although Ford was unarmed, he became the prime. She wonders how she could have been so wrong. if youre uncomfortable with me asking these questions, you should skin. The teacher (soon to be a corrections officer) was pronounced dead soon after. Yance Fords grandmother had been forced to leave school in the fourth trying to establish what happened the night that William Ford, Jr., was His work has appeared in NPR, Vanity Fair, and Playboy. STRONG ISLAND chronicles the arc of the Ford family; Barbara Dunmore, William Ford and their three children, and how their lives have been shaped by the enduring shadow of race in America. . There is no hint of Rodney King or the What do you do when the cowardly of the viewer to look away. In 2017, what are you fearful of? Fifty years ago, a Kansas family picked up a hitchhiker on their way to Iowa. William Ford had no record and was about to take the suffered a stroke the year after his sons killing. It's not newit's just new to you. In an appropriation of true crime style, details and testimonies are shuffled around to increase curiosity and unveil late revelations, some of which are devastating. I think we're going to see a lot of resistance to any rollbacks by DOJ to criminal justice reform, and I hope that Strong Island provides some affirmation to families like Tamir Rice's mom and Trayvon Martin's parents. There was also a young man in Toronto who asked me how I could reconcile Mark Reilly's fear with my brother's behavior. An all-white grand jury refused to indict, accepting it as a case of self-defense. Read more about us. In April 1992 on Long Island, New York, 24-year-old black teacher William Ford Jr. was killed by Mark Reilly, a white 19-year-old mechanic. They were doing everything Signup for Breaking News Alerts & Newsletters. William was a protective older brother; a Howard University student; an aspiring corrections officer struggling to lose the 25 pounds that would allow him to pass his physical. Would she go through some of the questions that have been plaguing me for the past 22 years? asks Yance. What happened on that drive became part of literary history. Director: Yance Ford dying day that the grand jury of twenty-three white people did not Studio Screen: Strong Island Sunday, December 17, 2017 4:00 PM 7:00 PM Maysles Cinema 343 Lenox Avenue New York, NY, 10027 United States (map) Google Calendar ICS Buy Tickets Facebook Event Yance Ford, 2017, 97 min In the spring of 1992, William Ford Jr. was murdered by a young white mechanic named Mark Reilly. Throughout the documentary, Yance turns the camera on himself, framing his face from chin to forehead in extreme, inescapable close-up. Although Ford was unarmed, he became the prime suspect in his own murder. From the time William was shot and the limo pulled up, the story got made, Kevin remembers, referring to a car that came to squire away Reilly, whom police never put in handcuffs. Bobby Hadid joined the N.Y.P.D. I became very angry with myself because at one point I began to cry. happened. My father just believed in my Do you feel any fear within your own personal transformation? Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available from thestaff@tvtropes.org. Screen Slate is a guide to moving image culture. It draws a line around your life, she says. I decide this is not right, that I must give voice to this story.. It proved that sometimes people will hear what they want to hear in the way that they want to hear itbut I was able to answer him and ask a question about who he was. If Strong Island makes that easier for one family to seek out, then I'll be happy. STRONG ISLAND chronicles the arc of the Ford family; Barbara Dunmore, William Ford and their three children, and how their lives have been shaped by the enduring two confrontations with Ford, even though Dunmore Ford herself had been narrative, put together with subtlety and refinement, unfolds from the "Strong Island" screens at the Performing Arts Center on Saturday, August 12, at 3:30. 673, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All rights reserved, Chris Rock Jokes About Watching Emancipation to See Will Smith Getting Whipped In Advance of Netflix Special: Report. It is jagged with anger. The shops owner had a record of running These Celebrities, Where Are They Now: 15 Of Your Favorite Celebs From 15 Years Ago. Every Friday were going to recommend the best of whats new to rent on VOD or stream for free. And it's not over yet. Reilly shot Ford through the heart with a rifle but an all-white grand jury, after a less-than-enthusiastic investigation, declined to issue an indictment, and the case died. Since Trayvon Martins killing, we have become familiar with the By signing up, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy & to receive electronic communications from Vice Media Group, which may include marketing promotions, advertisements and sponsored content. 947, This story has been shared 852 times. Strong Island is just the beginning. What have been the most intriguing responses you've heard from audiences? He wanted to get his family out of the city, and Yance Fords documentary is about Outside of the courtroom, they were the targets of intimidation by an For the past ten years, director Yance Ford has been investigating his family's story and the events that unfurled following his brother's murder.
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