‘Till” is written and directed by Chinonye Chukwu (writer and director of “Clemency”) and co-written by Keith Beauchamp and Michael Reilly based on the true story of Mamie Till Mobley (played by Danielle Deadwyler, “The Harder They Fall”), the mother of Emmett Till. The film details Mamie’s relentless pursuit of justice for her 14-year-old son, Emmett, who, in 1955, was lynched while visiting his cousins in Mississippi.
I’ve known about the story of Emmett Till for awhile, however, I haven’t known the fullest extent of everything that went down in detail until watching this movie. I also had no knowledge of the story of his mother, Mamie, and all of what she went through in order to try and bring justice for her son against those that were responsible for his murder. “Till” highlights all of that from why Emmett Till, a Chicago-born Black teenager, went to Mississippi during the height of racial tensions in the mid-1950s in the first place to the court case and public scrutiny she endured and the aftermath of all of that.
This movie is an extremely difficult watch and I’m sure will be triggering to a lot of people, especially Black mothers. It never crosses the line of being a trauma porn movie like a lot of people may have thought it was going to be after the initial trailer was released, but there are moments that are very tense, emotional and difficult to sit through but that’s mainly just due to how spot on a lot of these performances are (which I’ll get into later).
The question could be asked why we need this movie, especially since there are a ton of civil rights movies like this that address similar issues of racism throughout the 1950s, but this movie does make very clear what its purpose ultimately is. Mamie Till wanted the story of her son’s death to be heard.
The film even highlights the fact that she wanted an open casket funeral, even with her son being near-unrecognizable in the condition he was in after the lynching, and for the photos of the funeral to spread all around the United States so people will know exactly what happened to her son to make a point.
The film was also approved to be made by Mamie’s family and I believe they were closely involved with the project to make sure the story was told in the way Mamie Till wanted it to be told.
This film itself can be a bit conventual in its storytelling. There are a lot of empowering movies that take place during the civil rights movement and highlight the horrors that Black people went through, and still go through, during that time.
“Till” doesn’t do much from a screenplay standpoint to stick out, but what does elevate this story are the performances, especially from Deadwyler, and the powerful and, most importantly, smart direction from Chukwu.
Deadwyler is a powerhouse of a performer. I first was introduced to her last year in the Netflix western film “The Harder They Fall,” where she was great, but she is something else entirely with this film. If this movie is anything, it’s an acting showcase for someone who, unfortunately, hasn’t gotten many big roles throughout her 12-year-long career. It’s hard not to start tearing up anytime she’s on screen.
There’s one scene in particular, a one-take sequence in a Mississippi courtroom, where she does something with her eyes that I can’t even begin to describe, but I was amazed with what she was able to do. It’s one of the best performances of the entire year.
Jalyn Hall is also excellent as Emmett Till. He does a fantastic job showcasing Emmett’s youthfulness, innocences and joy and that does a lot to make what eventually happens even more devastating in the film. John Douglas Thompson as Emmett Till’s uncle is also a standout for me and has one scene near a lake with Deadwyler that is incredible. Whoopi Goldberg is also in the film as Emmett Till’s grandmother and although she doesn’t get much to do, she does the most with it.
Chukwu is so smart with how she directs this film and elevates the story beautifully. She shows exactly what she needs to show and nothing more. We never actually see the violence that gets done to Emmett Till, because the thought of it is already traumatizing enough, only the fallout of what actually happened. Chukwu doesn’t try to be a feel-good movie like other films of its kind do, but it does end on a hopeful note during a speech from Mamie to the NAACP.
Is “Till” a movie you’re going to want to watch? I think this is a case where you’ll need to decide that for yourself. If you think this would be too triggering and you don’t need to see another film that explores Black trauma, then that’s a valid reason not to see this. But if you’re in the right headspace to watch this powerful but difficult film, then I’d say give it a watch because Emmett Till’s story deserves to be told. “Till” came out in select theaters Oct. 27.
