Direction: Julius Onah
Country: USA
Super-protective white parents, Amy (Naomi Watts) and Peter (Tim Roth), start questioning the true personality of their adopted black son, Luce (Kelvin Harrison Jr.), a former child soldier who never ceases to show gratitude for the opportunities of living in America. At the age seven, he left his war-ravaged Eritrea behind and flew to America, where his new relatives invested in therapy and rehabilitation to give him the emotional stability needed. They apparently succeeded in that effort.
In fact, Luce became an authentic model of inspiration for the African Americans in high school. He is a brilliant student, a winning athlete, and a sympathetic person with whom everyone can have a nice conversation. However, his teacher, Harriet Wilson (Octavia Spencer), becomes considerable concerned about a pro-violence essay he wrote. She confirms her initial suspicion after inspecting his locker.
Based on the off-Broadway play by JC Lee, who also teamed up with director Julius Onah in the script, Luce is all about actions, opinions, and reactions. Yet, its strongest scene - involving Harriet’s mentally ill sister, Rosemary (Marsha Stephanie Blake) - comes from a subplot that contributes significantly to stimulate this character-led drama thriller. Despite the isolated, pungent moment described above, most of the tension is swallowed by the overcontrolled dynamics, with the film crashing in its third act.
Onah has things to say about racial disparity, severe trauma, confused parents, and hidden pain. He just didn’t find the right way of saying it, leading the film to land on an anti-climactic zone that almost made me indifferent to the topics in question, as well as unfulfilled.
