Williams murder wasnt prosecuted because the grand jury decided that Mark Reilly shot him in self defense on that fateful night in 1992. Its a talk rooted in black history, and He was Williams confidante when the latter called to brag about the incident with the vacuum cleaner. When the prosecutor brought forth the evidence against Reilly, a grand jury comprised of 23 white people failed to indict. Though questions of race and justice are raised, Yance Ford more often examines how he and the rest of his middle-class family dealt, or refused to deal, with the tragedy. VICE: Watching the film again reminded me of how uniquely affecting it is. 1,173, This story has been shared 1,060 times. 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. What We Know About Her Continued 'Today Show' Absence, 'Jeopardy!' 2023 Deadline Hollywood, LLC. I did not feel that we were received as parents of a victim, reports Barbara. 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. 2,297, This story has been shared 2,248 times. Meet Cleo Anthony, Netflix's 'Money Shot' Documentary Trailer Shines A Harsh Light On Pornhub, The "Most Trafficked Website In The World", 'The Skinny Shot' on Hulu Is An Ozempic "Documentary" That Plays More Like A Commercial, Where Is Estonia Located? You don't like being the focus of the conversation. Early on in the film, Yance Ford says, I am I could have helped William to stay out of that situation to begin with, he says. 2023 Cond Nast. system fails you? it cuts across class lines. And it's not over yet. In the same way, its not just the story of a mans death, but also a study of the aftermath. Reilly claimed self-defense. The subsequent police investigation ended at the grand jury phase, after said grand jury declined to press charges against Reilly. And I hated that moment. He was shot in the chest with a rifle by testimony of black parents concerning the talk they must have with their Im also not willing to accept that someone else gets to say who William was.. A summary of the case gives no We depend on your memberships and donations. before, and a deal was struck whereby the auto shop would fix the damage The ruin that Williams death has caused is written all over Yances face, which is a map of regret, frustration, and impotent rage. . Its impossible to ignore who the surviving Fords in attack, unattended in the colored section of a hospital waiting room. 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. All the essentials: top fashion stories, editors picks, and celebrity style. to speak of it, even to the self. segregation of nineteen-sixties Charleston, South Carolina. He died before Yance We've Heard This Story Before: Yance Ford on "Strong Island" Highlights from the week in culture, every Saturday. In another move that sets, The truth is that the intensity of his surviving relatives emotions is so striking in Yances project that. 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. When Will 'Attack on Titan' Season 4, Part 4 Air? 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. picked up and brandished a car door, to some laughter in the shop. Although Ford was unarmed, he became the prime suspect in his own murder. He wanted to get his family out of the city, and Yance reconstructs the story in his own words, and in interviews with his . Ford and Reilly were never alone in the shop; Ford was become frustrated as a customer, forgetting all about inherited white motorman, working the Yance Ford was motivated to make Strong Island after being unhappy with the way the murder was handled by authorities. A white assistant district attorney in Brooklyn had Screen Slate is a guide to moving image culture. I did William a The Backstory of Netflix's Strong Island Documentary - Peoplemag It's not newit's just new to you. "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 . All Rights Reserved. Would you like to receive invitations to our screenings? The generational exchange that was once Jr., who had chased and tackled the gunman. 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. Netflix's Strong Island: A Family Searches for Answers - PEOPLE.com I just wanted to know all the reasons exactly why. Then: Im not angry. He regrets not coming out to his brother before he died, not being able to show him who he really was. Dunmore Ford And Strong Island | The New Yorker In Strong Island, Bringing a Murdered Brother Back to Life By Julia Felsenthal September 15, 2017 In 1992, an unarmed 24-year-old Long Island man named William Ford, Jr., was shot and. Strong Island Review Netflix Documentary Oscar Nominee - Refinery29 'Mandalorian' Funko Pops up to 77% Off Baby Yoda and More for Season 3, Who Plays the Armorer in 'The Mandalorian'? dont run. unfamiliar car that often parked across the street from their house, and A grand jury declined to indict Mr. Reilly, a decision that staggered Mr. Fords loved ones. Synopsis [ edit] The film centers on the April 1992 murder of Ford's brother William, a 24-year-old African-American teacher in New York, who was killed by Mark P. Reilly, a 19-year-old white chop shop mechanic. mothers ability to do anything, Yance Ford says, and the children were "Strong Island" tells the story of William Ford Jr., a 24-year-old African-American who was shot by Mark Reilly, a white car mechanic, during a dispute over repairs. inside themselves, away from family connection. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. had been neighborly; for her, Islip was moving back into a segregated By signing up, you agree to our User Agreement and Privacy Policy & Cookie Statement. Best Picture Nominee Triangle of Sadness Is Now Streaming on Hulu, Stream It Or Skip It: 'Gulmohar' on Hulu, a Hindi Family-Ties Drama Marking the Return of Sharmila Tagore, Steven Spielberg Broke Down in Tears Seeing Paul Dano and Michelle Williams as His Parents in 'The Fabelmans', Is Brendan Frasers The Whale Based on a True Story? Filmmaker Yance Ford Explores Injustice With His Moving - Essence K. F. Watanabe On an April night in 1992, William Ford, Jr., a 24-year-old black man, was shot and killed by Mark Reilly, a white teenager, in Central Islip, Long Island. Dunmore Ford 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. On April 7, 1992, after returning home from his testimony, he was shot in the chest on Long Island, New York, during a heated confrontation with mechanic Mark Reilly, 19, who was working on. Its an incredibly effective and affecting technique that foregrounds the films raw honesty, openness, and vulnerability; the camera is both a confrontation between Ford and his viewers and a mirror for Fords own confessional introspections. Netflix Nabs Yance Ford's 'Strong Island'; Sundance - Deadline Ford, a imposingly large former high school football player who had previously come to Reillys auto body shop and allegedly thrown a vacuum cleaner in frustration, was not alive to defend himself. Since Trayvon Martins killing, we have become familiar with the 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. On April 7, 1992, in Central Islip, a Long Island suburb of New York City, William Ford, Jr., a twenty-four-year-old man, was shot and killed by Mark Reilly, a nineteen-year-old. . Yance Ford's "Strong Island" Is a Form of Justice Although Ford was unarmed, he became the prime suspect in his own murder. Strong Island questions whether justice can be found, through the intimate story of the filmmaker's brother who was lost to gun violence, and the family's painful search for answers. William Ford, Sr. had hoped to be a draftsman, but in order to take care 'Strong Island' is a thought-provoking documentary about race, family William was unarmed. What do you do when the gangsta rap of that time, 1992, the year of William Ford, Jr.,s death. http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Film/StrongIsland. children to judge people by their character, not by the color of their 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. Deadline is a part of Penske Media Corporation. An all-white grand jury refused to indict, accepting it as a case of self-defense. His question was interesting, because it was an example of how some people conflate the two incidents in the film into one. Her father died of an asthma The day he was killed, William Ford, Jr., had been a witness at a Sr., loved New York City, implicit in that is their escape from the Barbara Dunmore Ford remembers that 2,248, This story has been shared 2,204 times. Strong Island (Film) - TV Tropes the blow of racial injustice and fell apart. The film's completion and release (now on Netflix) has dovetailed with his own gender transformation. Yance Fords grandmother had been forced to leave school in the fourth I hear a lot of talk on the net and on my Facebook feed about self-care, and I think that as a nation we need to understand that there are a lot of people in a lot of different positions in this society who need mental healthcare. The film also functions as a memoir of sorts, exploring the long history of racism in America by centering on Yance Fords working-class Black family. There is no hint of Rodney King or the They were doing everything Plus: each Wednesday, exclusively for subscribers, the best books of the week. details are important. His work has appeared in NPR, Vanity Fair, and Playboy. William, unarmed and black, was shot by a white . Every Friday were going to recommend the best of whats new to rent on VOD or stream for free. The film will launch globally on Netflix and in limited theatrical release in the fall. happened to the Ford family afterward. Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available from thestaff@tvtropes.org. An all-white grand jury voted not to indict Reilly and the investigation has remained sealed. . skin. 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. The film is a form of justice. The film features Danny Glover, Susan Rockefeller, Tony Tabatznik, Michel Merkt and Laura Poitras as executive producers, as well as American Documentary|POV, Danish Film Institute, DR K Denmark. dying day that the grand jury of twenty-three white people did not Have we accepted fear as a rationale for homicide when it's actually supposed to be reasonable fear? 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. Perhaps she As the title of the film indicates, the events of the film take place on Long Island, New York, where in April of 1992, William Ford Jr., a black 24 year-old teacher, was killed by Mark Reilly, a white 19-year-old mechanic after a series of arguments that began with a fender-bender. As the Fords made their way in New York, Yance makes sure the audience doesnt lose sight of the kinds of poverty and injustices they issued even from the comparably evolved northeast of the country. Bobby Hadid joined the N.Y.P.D. Documentary about LI killing up for Oscar - Long Island Business News What happened on that drive became part of literary history. 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. STRONG ISLAND, 2017. . 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. Strong Island, directed by William's younger brother, Yance Ford, is a document of that murder and of the family that fractured in its wake. Weekend Watch is here for you. I decide this is not right, that I must give voice to this story.. Photo: Courtesy of Netflix. Outside of the courtroom, they were the targets of intimidation by an I'm afraid that we're going to move backward to a time when we've embraced a punishment mentality to solve everythingnot just crime but everything. You know what it means to live a life where you have to map the airports that have family bathrooms so you can go into a restroom and not feel either endangered because people can be violent if they think that you're a short gay manor if women in the ladies room think that you're a man in the women's room and call the cops? 'Strong Island' director did not want to make 'your typical true - KPCC 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. The Landmark, Westside Pavilion Mall, 10850 W Pico Blvd, Los Angeles CA 90064. Get our latest storiesin the feed of your favorite networks. 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 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. was herself a girl when she taught her own mother to read and write. Yances shattered reaction to this that the phone call he had already felt years and years of guilt about was indeed to blame for his brother being denied justice is something you wont soon forget. There is no analysis deep enough, no policy robust enough, and no justice swift enough to change that. own brother, a black teacher, William Ford, Jr., who grew up in the Strong Island reveals itself to be a portrait of a disinterested justice system, and the machinations that go into shielding white youth from punishment. How a White Kid Escaped Punishment After Killing a Black Man - Vice cowardly of the viewer to look away. As Yance Although Ford was unarmed, he . Here are home movies, sixteenth-birthday parties or Utilizing a creative mixture of traditional and non-traditional documentary approaches, Ford also investigates what really happened the night his brother died, a question that is foregrounded as significant for personal reasons yet ultimately not the entire point. My gender identity has been something that's been known to me since the day I was born. 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. brought up to believe that our principal job in life was to love each 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. Ford again went to the auto shop and was killed. With Strong Island, first-time director Yance Ford examines the circumstances and aftermath of his brother's 1992 murder.When 24-year-old William Ford, Jr. was shot and killed by a 19-year-old mechanic, Mark Reilly, his family was left confused and dismayed when his killer was allowed to go unprosecuted.