Themes: Unlikely Friendships, Redemption, Street Gangs
Main Cast: Jamie Foxx, Lynn Whitfield, Lee Thompson Young, Brenden Jefferson, Brenda Bazinet
Release Year: 2003
Country: US
Run Time: 95 minutes
Plot
Jamie Foxx once again brilliantly demonstrates his acting chops as Stan "Tookie" Williams, the South Central Los Angeles native who, at the age of 17, co-founded the infamous Crips street gang. If one is to believe the script of this made-for-cable film, Williams hadn't intended the Crips to wallow in crime and violence; instead, he'd hoped that the gang would form a united front to protect his 'hood from other gangbangers. Needless to say, it didn't turn out that way, and within a few years of its 1971 formation, the Crips was the biggest and most powerful gang in the country, with branches in virtually every state. Ultimately, Williams is charged with murder and sentenced to San Quentin's death row in 1987. There he experiences an epiphany and becomes an advocate for peace, harmony, and tolerance, writing children's books that preach against the lure of street gangs. As the years roll by and the date of his execution draws closer, Williams manages to negotiate a peace between the Crips and their chief rivals, the Bloods, and even manages to receive three Nobel Prize nominations. Lynn Whitfield co-stars as Barbara Becnel, the crusading journalist who helped Williams see the light -- not so much to save his soul, but to prevent a similar fate from befalling her own son. Although considerable liberties are taken with the facts, Redemption: The Stan "Tookie" Williams Story neither glamorizes nor excuses its title character, nor the "gangsta" culture that he so enthusiastically embraced in his youth. After a showing at the Sundance Film Festival, the movie made its FX network debut on March 3, 2004. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Wes "Maestro" Williams - Tony Bogard; Greg Ellwand - Prison Chief; CCH Pounder - Winnie Mandela; Barbara Barnes-Hopkins - Mrs. Williams; Tom Barnett - Jim Kates; Karl Campbell - Deuce-Five; Joseph Pierre - Ray Washington (age 17); Vincent Cobham - Buddha; Kahmaara Armatrading - Stan Williams (ages 9-12); Philip Craig - Warden Gomez; Rosemary Dunsmore - Warden Woodford; Shane Daly - Assoc. Warden Scanlon; Calvin Green - Balfour Armstrong; Alison MacLeod - Mrs. Moore; John Bayliss - Robert Lee Morgan; Barbara Gordon - Mrs. Morgan; Derek Keurvost - Prof. Keach
Credit
Dave Hackel - Art Director, David Harckel - Art Director, Robi Reed - Casting, Robin D. Cook - Casting, Barbara Becnel - Co-producer, Vondie Curtis-Hall - Director, Terilyn A. Shropshire - Editor, Rudy Langlais - Executive Producer, Van Spurgeon - Executive Producer, Jaime Rucker King - Executive Producer, Marcus King - Executive Producer, Jon Katzman - Executive Producer, Frederick Capitelli - Executive Producer, Maria Capitelli - Executive Producer, John Rucker King - Executive Producer, Terence Blanchard - Composer (Music Score), David Hackl - Production Designer, David Greene - Cinematographer, Sue Bugden - Producer, Eva Garofalo - Producer, Thomas Hudderley - Sound/Sound Designer, J.T. Allen - Screenwriter
