What can we forgive, and what can we forget? For internationally recognized artist Titus Kaphar, what started as a documentary project exploring said notions ultimately took shape as a groundbreaking narrative, starring a wildly talented cast to tell his personal story about coming to terms with a difficult past. Exhibiting Forgiveness is writer-director Kaphar's perfect title for his near-perfect film about an accomplished painter (André Holland) who's on the up-and-up career-wise, but whose world is thrown for a loop after an unexpected visit from his estranged father La'Ron (John Earl Jelks). It's indeed based on Kaphar's own journey, and with the help of some of Hollywood's finest performers, this artistic new drama film will stick with you long after the credits roll.
Art Imitating Life in Cinema
Exhibiting Forgiveness is a drama film written and directed by Titus Kaphar and released in 2024. A Black artist on the rise to fame has his future thrown in jeopardy when his estranged father arrives seeking to reconnect with his son, only to discover that forgiveness is only one part of the uphill battle to recovery.
- Release Date
- October 18, 2024
- Director
- Titus Kaphar
- Cast
- Andre Holland , John Earl Jelks , Andra Day , Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor
- Runtime
- 117 Minutes
- Writers
- Titus Kaphar
- Studio(s)
- Homegrown Pictures , Shade Pictures , Hunting Lane Films
- Distributor(s)
- Roadside Attractions
- Holland is reliably remarkable, while solid supporting turns keep up the momentum.
- Beautifully filmed from a painter's eye and featuring gorgeous artwork.
- A powerful script communicates big emotions with subtle realism.
- Andra Day could've been utilized more, and some of Tarrell's actions in the climax are questionable.
Like virtually the rest of us, Tarrell is experiencing issues trying to get a good night's sleep when we first meet him. But his night terrors seem to raise the bar to another level. There's sleep talking, and then there's Tarrell's antics, a sort of mid-slumber thrashing and hollering that consistently disturbs loving wife Aisha (Andra Day, always magnetic) and their young son Jermaine (Daniel Barriere), who's all the way in the other bedroom.
It's scary stuff, and once the first act reveals Tarrell to be a wildly successful artist in hot demand by his representation to produce another gallery for the masses — including white-privileged folks Tarrell can't help but scoff at — one has to wonder where the night terrors derive from. Meanwhile, the medical bills and related expenses for Tarrell's ailing mama Joyce (the outstanding Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor) are piling up, so maybe he needs to just bite the bullet and do another showcase for the dough.
But the saying goes, "God laughs at your plans" — and for Tarrell, this comes in the form of long-lost dad La'Ron arriving in town. You already know there are rifts when we see Tarrell addressing his own dad by his first name (instead of "Dad" or even "Pop"), a device also used thematically in Steven Spielberg's War of the Worlds film with Tom Cruise. And in many ways, the relationship between these two men is an emotional war of very different worlds.
André Holland Is Incredible as a Wounded Son
The raw, complicated, authentic dynamic depicted between stars Holland and Jelks is the most groundbreaking element of the whole picture. Plus, Jelks then electrifies as a younger version of Tarrell's dad, when he was still using drugs, in a series of horrific flashbacks where he puts young Tarrell (I Saw the TV Glow star Ian Foreman) to back-breaking work, day after day, to rake up drug money.
Yes, an addiction to crack is what has driven La'Ron away from a happy life with his family, but hold your judgment of the film; Exhibiting Forgiveness doesn't succumb to stereotypes. Watch out for one frightening confrontation between the young parents while teenage Tarrell hides away in the other room. Laphar's new film will indeed catch you by surprise with a whirlwind of dark, complex emotions.
Holland has proven his chops again and again over the years — Moonlight, The Knick, High Flying Bird — and it's hard to believe a whole decade has passed by since Selma was released, with his perfect portrayal of Andrew Young. Exhibiting Forgiveness features arguably his finest role to date, and we can't wait to see what's next for the sophisticated and suave lead.
Forgiving by Way of Artistic Expression
Kaphar's script also effectively keeps the drama heightened all the way through, in case viewers might be worried that such an artistically centered production might lack the necessary narrative momentum. Watch out for a harrowing third act, once the more religious Joyce's relentless optimism drives Tarrell mad to a certain breaking point: How could his mother welcome this man back into their lives, simply because he's cleaned up his act and found God?
Meanwhile, Tarrell's wife Aisha has to put her singing career on hold for the sake of Tarrell's career and personal transgressions, which almost feels like a meta drawback to the film. Sure, Andra Day is dynamite in her fiery scenes as Aisha, and we're even graced with a bit of vocal performance by the Golden Globe winner, but fans will be disappointed that she's a smaller figure in the film. A bit more out of Day, and Exhibiting Forgiveness would be closer to perfect. It's also possible that folks won't even notice this minor pitfall, since the shellshocking turns from Jelks, Ellis-Taylor and, most of all, Holland more than make up for it.
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Art has been said to be a very effective outlet for expressing and excavating meaning from one's own experiences, be they traumatic or pleasantly memorable, and Exhibiting Forgiveness subtly evokes the power of art to heal (there's a thing called 'art therapy,' after all). The film succeeds on so many levels, particularly when Kaphar's artwork is cleverly woven into the narrative without coming off as shameless self-promotion.
The art world already knew he was a talent to be reckoned with, and now the cineverse will hope he continues to produce similarly layered scripts with hard-hitting themes captured with gorgeous cinematography. Hopefully, despite its rather early release before awards season, Exhibiting Forgiveness will garner some rightful attention from the Academy and more. From Roadside Attractions, Exhibiting Forgiveness will open in theaters on October 18.
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