
His aggressive outbursts are merely used as devices to reunite him with his mentor, who in turn uses them as devices to extract another piece of trauma from his patient. The whole point of Antwone's referral to the shrink is his violent streak, but the nature of this is never really explored.
-screenshot.jpg)
Derek Luke makes for a likeable lead as the confused Antwone, while Joy Bryant delivers a similarly promising performance - even if her role is fairly undemanding.īut there are narrative holes. Washington duly plumps for a romantic take on the subject matter, favouring lingering close-ups and cutesy moments - many of which are successful in a Good Will Hunting kind of way, thanks to charming actors and dialogue. The psychiatrist turns out to need a little help in the love department himself, so perhaps his friendship with the boy can help him work through problems of his own. The set-up is ripe for a sentimental approach: Antwone Fisher is an abused, underprivileged young man discovering his poetic abilities and capacity for love through the understanding ear of a psychiatrist. He eventually found his aunt, Annette Elkins, who lived in Cleveland, and within months he met all of his kin, including his mother, Eva Mae.Denzel Washington has opted for a simple story for his directorial debut, which brings with it both pleasures and pitfalls. It was then in 1992 that he decided to look for his real family. Upon leaving the Navy, Antwone took a job as a security guard at Sony Pictures Entertainment. He ended up sleeping on park benches and in alleys, and it was at that critical moment in his life that he decided to join the Navy.Īntwone Fisher spent eleven years with the Navy where he learned many lessons and befriended a Navy psychiatrist, Commander Williams (portrayed by Denzel Washington in the film), who helped him realize his potential. He fell in with a criminal named Butch to avoid the derelicts and sexual predators at the YMCA. Upon graduating high school, he found himself staying at the YMCA where he began life as an emancipated minor. For fourteen years with the Picketts, Antwone suffered both emotional and physical abuse.Īntwone walked out the door of the Picketts without getting so much as a good-bye. Pickett, where some of his most traumatic childhood experiences unfolded.

He was subsequently placed in the home of Reverend and Mrs. The state eventually put Antwone back in the foster system, claiming that Antwone's attachment to his foster mother could be problematic. Antwone was placed in foster care within the first few weeks of his life, and for two years he lived with a loving family.

His father, Eddie, was shot and killed before Antwone was even born. Antwone Fisher was born in prison to seventeen-year-old Eva Mae Fisher and twenty-three-year-old Eddie Elkins.
