Sing Sing

❝Brother, we're here to become human again. To put on nice clothes and dance around. And enjoy the things that is not in our reality.❞ ──────⊹⊱✫⊰⊹────── I saw a review for Sing Sing after watching it that said it's an anomaly within the prison genre, and I completely agree. It's unlike anything I've seen. Sing Sing has none of the casual homophobia, racism or shocking violence that a lot of prison films tend to contain. There is little to no toxic masculinity displayed by any of the inmates; I'll be honest, I was half-especting Divine Eye to revert to past ways and beat up the white guy, but I was pleasantly surprised to see him grow and mellow over the course of the film. And everyone in the RTA program fully supported him. When G broke down, no-one gave him shit for it. Part of the reason behind this was the camaraderie built through the power of acting, but it was also because of how they were encouraged to display their emotions, and no-one's suggestions were mocked. This is the kind of friendship and emotional maturity that young men should aspire to, not the 'silent alpha male' mindset I worryingly see being pushed more and more. So many tears were shed seeing the group talk about their perfect memories, pull off the play, and while watching the credits roll. Every 'as himself' credit just brought on fresh sobs, and the footage of the real RTA group plays filled me with melancholic happiness; the optimism from every single person radiated off the screen, battling against a system built to oppress rather than truly rehabilitate. I was especially affected by Colman Domingo and Clarence Maclin's performances, but every single actor in this film deserves all the flowers. A24 is a great company in general, and I have faith that the inmates who saw Sing Sing in the prisons it was streamed in took courage from it. This film is hope.